by  Cheta Nwanze

Sadly, it appears that for all of his service, Ciaxon has been missing from social media for just over a week now, and yesterday night… a known rabble-rouser alleged that Ciaxon was in fact singing hymns at DSS Central.

On the morning of Sunday, March 30, a fire-fight took place within a few feet of Nigeria’s sovereign, an event, which the DSS, the organisation charged with intelligence gathering and protection of senior government officials, described as an attempt by insurgents to play the role of Michael Scofield in a Nigerian setting.

That series was brought to our attention by an aspiring videographer Yusuf, better known by his moniker, Ciaxon. Among his services to the Nigerian people on that day, Ciaxon also did our boys in uniform a service, taking time out from his movie directing activities to provide a few with a drink of water in the scorching Abuja heat. THAT, is how to thank our boys in uniform for getting in harm’s way, to protect the rest of us.

Sadly, it appears that for all of his service, Ciaxon has been missing from social media for just over a week now, and yesterday night, while the rest of Nigeria, presumably including a lot of DSS officials were watching Manchester United and Barcelona get shoved out of footie’s Champion’s League, a known rabble-rouser alleged that Ciaxon was in fact singing hymns at DSS Central. Is that true? No one up until now has been able to tell us Ciaxon’s whereabouts at the moment, but it is very important that he be found. After his service, what he indeed deserves is commendation, not a spell on the naughty step.

Speaking of naughty boys, and some members of the DSS have been decidedly naughty. Iheanacho Nwosu, an editor with the Sun newspaper, was forcibly taken to the naughty step just vacated by an errant DSS officer. You see, Nwosu had had the gall to report the details of a boxing match the previous day, between said DSS official and a policeman who was silly enough to tell him “no parking”. Sadly, Nwosu’s incomplete report did not tell us who won the boxing match.

Recommended reading

Chiagozie Nwonwu, writes a tribute to Kabir Salisu. Husband, father, ¢h€£$k¥ fan, and above all, Nigerian soldier, who died on Monday, April 7, 2014, serving his country. God rest the dead.

Bits and bobs

• In a financial boxing match, the country’s big wigs will on Friday decide who should collect VAT. Lagos, or the FG. I hope Lagos wins. It will move the states towards more sorely needed independence.
• Speaking of pugilists, but this one of the verbal kind, Uncle FFK is moaning about people insulting him. Hello Kettle, my name is Pot.
• Speaking of the states, Jigawa is setting a shining example in providing power to its people, in a country with abundant sunshine, they must be commended for applying brain power.
• The FG on its part must be commended for starting the process of obeying the recommendations of the Oronsaye report. 7500potentially redundant staff in the aviation sector don’t think so.
• In news that must be getting assorted babarigas at the NFF quacking in their slippers, FIFA intends to audit the accounts of African footie associations, including the NFF. Talk about armed robbers wanting to catch pick-pockets…
• Sunday has been searching for a job for ten years. He’s been unlucky. Yesterday, he attempted to get normally trigger happy Nigerian security operatives to shoot him. He was lucky. Then he jumped out of a moving bus onto oncoming traffic. He was lucky. I guess he’s turned a corner

Your feedback: A Soldier’s Tale

Ifeyinwa Morah wrote,

Good morning Cheta,

I liked the piece you wrote on a brief history of boko haram. It also corresponds with a time line when BBC Africa (radio) had announced in 2007 that Al-queda was training some recruits in parts of Yobe, Borno, bauchi and even Kaduna.

Very quickly, what I have to say concerns the soldier who spoke with the VOA over the weekend. Now I understand that the Defense spokesman would say all he said to protect the army and the country, which I appreciate. I also believe that anyone who talks on radio might also adopt that option. But do I believe the soldier? YES. I believe every word the soldier said. Why? Because I have heard such things from soldiers I know. He’s not the first, I know a soldier that has left the air force because of this problem, and he says tens of soldiers are deserting the army on a daily basis. This problem is bigger than we can imagine. Firstly, when I was still living in Kaduna, my father always mentioned that his friends in the army complained that some ‘Generals’ and some Borno Politicians were releasing boko haram guys that have been captured. Now, it is full blown. There are some many horrible stories, there are even cases where soldiers are killed by fellow soldiers because they refuse to go against the objective of the national assignment/mission. How do you think soldiers who were in transport (last year) could be massacred in that manner. Soldiers are in a mess right now, sad thing there’s no one to talk to, your colleague, unit commander or even sector commander might just be a boko haram agent, so if you talk, they make calls, the next time you go into town (on mufty), you are very sure some guys on motorbikes will spray bullets into your belly. (This happened to a soldier serving in maiduguri)

The guy who left the airforce because of this was saying how his unit was sent to Bama after one of those attacks to inspect the level of damage. Just before getting there, they ambushed 4 guys in a vehicle with Borno state govt number plate, they searched them, saw various weapons in the vehicle and knives dripping with fresh blood. It was obvious who they were, after a couple of minutes, their boss who led the unit (a colonel from the South south) got a call from his boss at base, asking him to take the boys he just captured to the Borno state govt house. The colonel now lied that he killed the boys on seeing such incriminating evidence. After ending the call, he then ordered the boys be killed. There are just so many terrible things going on right now in the Nig Defense.

Funny thing is while the rest of Nigerians call the speaking soldier a coward, his colleagues who want to carry out the national assignment praise him for speaking out. Most of them are deserting the force as they don’t see the war ending soon, besides your enemies are not only the boko haram, your colleague might just be your enemy also. Every one in the defense knows this. I don’t know what will be left of Nigeria if her defence is this cracked within.

Right of Reply

Ola Moses wrote,

Hmmm, although I understand the thinking behind our friends conclusion that Nigerians do not love eachother, but let us be clear that black on black crime is rampant globally. Uk, US, Africa is no exception perhaps we should dig deep into our educational system and national psyche. Which I may add seems to not give black people world over a sense of worth. Now that’s an issue we should we should look at!

Chxta responds,

Yes Ola, it will appear that black people have no love for each other. The reasons have historical roots dating back half a millenium. This issue will be talked about in this Sunday’s History Class on Twitter.

Dapo Ogunniran wrote,

So many things have happened since you went went on AWOL without informing us your followers, most especially was the case of Wendell Simlin aka Reno Omokri, which was a very big deception and supposed to be treated as a crime since many lives have been lost to B/H and being lost daily, but is seems Wendell’s issue has been swept under the carpet without any investigation,it baffles me personally that such accusations came from someone close to the president and close to intelligent sources of this nation and yet the case is never treated, what did you and fellow readers think about it? Should it be ignored?

Chxta responds,

Issues being swept under the carpet is not a new thing in Nigeria, so why does Wendell Simlin’s case surprise you? As a matter of fact, the floor beneath our national carpet must be decidedly bumpy given that so many issues have been left to rot there. That’s where, actually, the culture of impunity begins. Changing all of that will be a long, hard, process. Are you willing to help?

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Op-ed pieces and contributions are the opinions of the writers only and do not represent the opinions of Y!/YNaija.