It is rare for the Nigerian Air Force to get entangled in controversies  that  are capable of tarnishing its image, unlike its sister service, the Nigerian Navy, whose Ratings are notorious for clashing with the civilian populace instead of sea pirates. Unfortunately, the Air Force came into the public domain, even on the international radar, on January 17, 2017, when it missed its programmed target and the fighter jet, loaded with missiles, instead of unleashing death on the supposed enemy target, hit  the camp of the internally displaced persons (IDPs), innocent Nigerians whose lot has been reduced to near-nothingness  due to their misfortune to be living in an area where war is being fought.

When l spoke with some retired pilots while regretting this particular mishap, they waved it away as one of those mistakes that happen when human beings are handling anything. They pointed to Afghanistan, Pakistan, lraq and Libya as similar examples.

however, the truth is that this is one mistake that cannot be swept under the carpet without a repercautionary measure. Can one swallow a bone without it choking the throat? So, how can a professional make such  a devastating mistake and it is waved aside as if his years of training were not necessary? When a dog is trained, it hardly makes any mistake, so why would a trained human being not be able to differentiate a market from an ordinary crowd?

Did we not hear of a fighter jet that once mistook fighting Nigerian soldiers for the Boko Haram terrorists they were after? Another mistake was recorded when a Nigerian Air Force fighter jet also veered off its targeted mission and almost bombed police officers training around Gwoza hill, all was explained away as “thinking they were Boko Haram terrorists.” Had that particular incident succeeded, the nation and the police would have been plunged into bereavement. It is usually explained away that such incidents are a common feature in a war situation. True, such things have happened in other countries but there were consequences. By the way, didn’t the President announce that his troops have won the war against Boko Haram? So, if a few terrorists were found in a location, must the Air Force use a fighter jet, instead of advising the military to use foot soldiers to ambush, surround and capture them alive? What was the rationale for deploying a fighter jet just to eliminate a handful of terrorists? The question is, who located the so-called terrorists and how was it confirmed that they were terrorist? Was the information analysed and cross-checked to be true? At what point was it discovered that they were not terrorist but IDPs? Was there any misinformation and who passed on the information and who approved the bombing?

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What we are commonisng are human beings and not chickens. l am yet to see a country where human lives are trivialised the way the Nigerian government behaves when Nigerians are killed either natural disasters or otherwise.

If we should critically assess the entire scenario, we should ask questions like why should we start from the onset to assume that the killing of the lDPs was a mistake, when  the report of professional investigators was yet to be submitted? It is on record that such mistakes have been recorded in other climes despite their sophistication and technological advancement, yet those involved were not spared. This particular jet is said to be one of the newly acquired fighter jets with up-to-date  technology. The manufacturers of these precision flying machines have manuals and pilots trained to handle them are also subjected not only to specific training programmes but are also restricted to certain behavioral attitudes before jumping into the jets. One of such requirements is that they must keep away from alcohol and they must be of a sound mind. It is only a sound mind that  would see a white image and still see it as white, while an unsound mind would see the image of an animal and would think it is that of a human being. While the Air Force is still wondering why and how the fighter pilot could have fired missiles at the  people in the IDPs camp, it behoves on the pilot to also explain what exactly crossed his mind when he sighted the human images. Thankfully, the President immediately dispatched a high-powered presidential delegation to pay a condolence visit to the Borno State governor. This is commendable, but would it not have been greatly appreciated had the President extended such  condolence gesture to the governors of Benue, Plateau and  Enugu states, where Fulani herdsmen  have in the past and in recent times ravaged and killed hundreds of innocent citizens? The mark of a friendly leader is his humane disposition when calamity hits his followers. He shows concern and empathises with them either by words of encouragement or by visitation. The former President of the United State Barack Obama won the hearts of Americans by this  singular act. It is such an act that is still alien to our President. No wonder the same people that voted him into office are wondering if there is something else about it. It is their opinion that the President only expresses  sympathy when there is an unfortunate mishap in the northern part of the country. This is not good because President Muhammadu Buhari once said “I belong to everybody and I belong to nobody.”

Peace Corps of Nigeria

That the Peace Corps of Nigeria, an organisation that claimed that it was registered to assist the federal government absorb unemployed youths in the country and also provide security for oil pipelines and other activities may not be the real truth. Nigeria already has redundant security personnel who have been trained but are yet to add anything valuable to the security system of the country, so why should the President assent to approving this organisation? Here is a country still battling with proliferation of  firearms, a country  whose trained security agents are daily being arrested for robbery, kidnapping and their involvement in communal disputes. The President should, for goodness sake, absorb the personnel of the Peace Corps into existing security institutions, instead of creating a new  agency.