Nigeria is losing too many soldiers

Thirteen soldiers killed today, 11 killed the previous day, yet another six or seven a fortnight ago.

And, oh, about one month, ago 30 soldiers were slaughtered in an ambush and the enemy proceeded to make gory videos of this killing, to be posted on YouTube.

What does all this mean? Simply put, Nigeria is at war! Yet, the Army hierarchy is in denial. Apparently so, because of the photo-shoots we see of the Chief of Army Staff paying courtesy visits to political appointees in the midst of all the slaughter.

The Nigerian Army needs to develop a coherent battle strategy to deal with the Boko Haram menace.

Deploying assets in Special Forces mode against an entrenched enemy that has acquired a chunk of territory out of Nigeria may not do the trick.

Special Forces deployment would be thoroughly effective against pockets of kidnappers operating in the bushes of Nigeria.

Boko Haram can only be defeated if the military adopts traditional old-school Pattonism by sending  division-size force components in a pincer-and-holding pattern against the occupying Boko Haram hordes and wear them out by sheer force of numbers and patience.

Wars involve grit, sacrifices and valour. In the ideal sense, an Army division should comprise of 100,000 men.

The Nigerian Army divisions scattered across the country should be segmented into their specialist brigades, battalions, companies, platoons, and squads and then push with immediate alacrity into the North-East.

Sunday  Jonah

Minna, Niger State.