Attack on Soldiers in Aba, Abia State on 30th May 2024 was a False Flag Operation carried out by enemies of the Southeast

Capt. Bish C. Johnson (Retd.)

"A peaceful southeast is a threat to these people and their criminal enterprise, so they must do whatever it takes to ensure that insecurity, lawlessness, chaos, deaths and destructions persist as that's the only way they can remain in business." Bish Johnson.

"I have always believed that mandatory sit-at-homes are not in the best interest of the citizens of the southeast who are mostly petty traders and must therefore trade every day of the week to earn a living." 

"Forcing them to stay at home instead of attending to their businesses will do nothing but impoverish them the more, and will ultimately betray the very essence of the values of justice, equity and fairness for which we preach."

I join well meaning South easterners and Nigerians to condemn the barbaric attacks on our Soldiers who committed no crimes other than carrying out their constitutionally mandated duties of keeping us all safe. 

These innocent Soldiers were ordinary Nigerians who were someone's father, brother, uncle, nephew, son and had nothing to do with Nigeria's intricate politics. To gun them down in such a heinous manner stands condemned. 

The Armed Forces of Nigeria should do whatever it takes to track down these animals and bring them to justice. I have the confidence that the Nigerian Armed Forces will do just that, and will also conduct themselves in a manner that is devoid of collective punishment that will pitch them against innocent citizens of Aba who they should work with to find the perpetrators of this dastardly and unwarranted attack. 

As the Armed Forces and other security agencies investigate this attack and other attacks in the region, they must cast their dragnet beyond the southeast as some of these attacks are sometimes perpetrated by those outside the region as false flag operations aimed at discrediting the region to put its people in bad light and ultimately derail whatever peace process is ongoing. A peaceful southeast is a threat to these people and their criminal enterprise, so they must do whatever it takes to ensure that insecurity, lawlessness, chaos, deaths and destructions persist as that is the only way they can remain in business. 

I commend the Abia State Government for the steps it has so far taken by offering a bounty of N25 million for any information leading to the apprehension of these criminals and a promise to support the families of the diseased Soldiers. I also call on other governments in the Southeast and the Federal Government to collaborate to ensure that the wellbeing of the families of our fallen heroes who die in line of duty and paid the ultimate price in our defense are prioritized. 

I have always believed that mandatory sit-at-homes are not in the best interest of the citizens of the southeast who are mostly petty traders and must therefore trade every day of the week to earn a living. Forcing them to stay at home instead of attending to their businesses will do nothing but impoverish them the more, and will ultimately betray the very essence of the values of justice, equity and fairness for which we preach. 

Criminal gangs and politically sponsored groups and various non-state actors most of whom are not from the southeast have capitalized on certain missteps of the past to commit mayhem. It is a no gainsaying to mention here that these criminal masterminds have turned the upheaval of insecurity into a lucrative commercial enterprise for their selfish benefits.

So today, I urge our dear President, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR, as I have always done, to undo certain unwise decisions of the past and re-direct the nation to the path of national reconciliation. One way to begin this is to look anew at the case of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu and urgently consider the prospects of political solutions. It is better to embrace political solutions to political agitations. Dialogue is key. 

Therefore, continuing the detention of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu is not the solution, rather it creates a situation that enables certain criminal elements who hide under the cover of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu's incarceration to cause chaos and security upheavals in the society for their own benefits. If Mazi Nnamdi Kanu is released, we would have removed and frustrated those who are using his incarceration as a reason to perpetrate violence and criminality in the southeast. 

It is therefore my hope that our president will heed this earnest call. As Abraham Lincoln once said to an American nation far more divided than ours, "We are not enemies, but friends... Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection." 

By immediately taking this step and freeing Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, the President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR would have put his hands on the arc of history and bent it once more toward the hope for a better Nigeria that is anchored on justice, equity, fairness, peace, security and economic stability.

Bishop C. Johnson

National Defense and Military Strategist, and Social Commentator