By Omoniyi Salaudeen
Navy Captain Tunji Shelle (rtd) is a former chairman of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Lagos State.
In this interview, he barred his mind on the deteriorating security situation in the country, especially the recent attack of the NDA by unknown gunmen.
Lamenting the state of uncertainty, he expressed fear that terrorists can have the audacity to invade the country on the day of election and do whatever they like.
The recent attack of the NDA by unknown gunmen is still a talking point in the polity. What does this portend for the nation?
It means all of us are not safe, it means that the country is in a state of uncertainty. For NDA to be attacked and attackers were able to go scot-free, it is unacceptable, it is unpardonable. From the Commandant to the recruit and everybody in charge of duty on that day, all of them have to be court martialled. It is unacceptable; nobody will hear it and be happy. They have a fence, which was broken into, they have radar to monitor the place, I cannot understand it. It is a total embarrassment to the nation. It means we don’t know what we are doing and we’d better wake up fast so that terrorists will not take over this country. It is like an insider work is there. People know that place inside out; they go there to pray every Friday. And that is why they could go to the classrooms, the Vice Chancellor’s office and rubbished everybody. It is an embarrassment to the nation.
Could this be taken as a confirmation of the insinuation that some untouchable individuals within the government circle are behind these audacious bandits?
I don’t have such information, but some people must have infiltrated that place. I wouldn’t know anybody in government who could sponsor it. I am not in the intelligent corps, I don’t have such information. But common sense dictates that the place should be properly secured. Even if it was sponsored, they should be able to fight back and get rid of them. That they could penetrate the place, kill a soldier and abduct some other officers is highly ridiculous. There is insiders’ work in it. Anybody can enter the officers’ mess, saying he is going to pray. Pray in a military installation? For what? For them to allow outsiders to be coming in is totally unacceptable, especially now that the security situation is shaky. It is very unfortunate.
How would you see government’s role in the overall security situation in the country?
Government is not doing enough. Nobody has shown leadership whether at the military level or administrative level. Everything has broken down. Nobody is secure any longer. It has never been this bad. We should do something about it. The military should wake up. If they have traitors among them, let them flush them out. If there is anybody suspected, let them hang the person. There is intelligence report, let them go and work on those reports. And that is why the government should be blamed because they have enough intelligence reports they can work on, but they are not working on them. Maybe they are looking in other direction, I wouldn’t understand why.
Some people were recently paraded as repentant members of Boko Haram insurgents by the Nigerian troop. If at all these people have repented, could they really be trusted and reintegrated into the society without causing further havoc?
How can Boko Haram come out to say he is repenting? If he is repenting, let him go and explain it to the appropriate authorities. It is not a political issue. It is something that affects the security of the nation and entire wellbeing of the people. We are all threatened now. Even if they repent, let them go and face the law. Let them be charged and be prosecuted. We haven’t seen any example of such since this administration came into power. They even arrested some sometimes ago and let them off the hook. Now, another group is coming out, saying they are repenting after killing several people, after turning so many people to widows and widowers, and some children fatherless and motherless. That is ridiculous. I wouldn’t know who is thinking for this government. I wouldn’t know why they have to do it this way.
Everybody keeps lamenting the state of uncertainty in the country. If this trend lingers, do you foresee the possibility of holding the 2023 general elections?
I am not a fortuneteller, I can’t foresee the future. If the government is ready to face the problem frontally, and address it as it should be, all these things can be curbed. We know the region is being troubled by insurgents and we know what to do. Long ago, I had advised that all the local government headquarters in the areas should be turned into military bases to safeguard the lives of the citizens within the neighbourhood. If they are able to do the right thing between now and next year, maybe the situation may improve before the next general elections. This idea of recycling terrorists back into the military in the guise of repentance cannot work. I don’t want to preempt what will happen because there are some states that are relatively peaceful. Their election can take place. But if we are not careful, it may escalate beyond our capacity. It is left for the government to listen to the advice of the experts. The governor of Borno State, Prof Babagana Zulum, even recently suggested the use of mercenaries to clear the insurgents once and for all. Let’s pay for it and get out of this mess. Let other West African countries join us in the war so that they can be burning them from their end, while we suffocate them at our own end here. We have to close our borders to prevent irresponsible terrorists from coming in and going out. Otherwise, they can come in on the election day and do what they like. I wish the country well so that we can move out of this mess.
Would you subscribe to the idea of declaration of a state of emergency in the North as already advocated by some concerned groups?
I think that is the best thing that could happen to this nation now. It is a measure that can work in addition to some other prescriptions. Let them deliberate it in the National Assembly and give the president the go ahead to do it. Let’s come out of this mess, it is unacceptable. We are tired. Everybody lives in fear. I don’t want to continue to live in fear.
Your party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which is an alternative to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), is enmeshed in leadership crisis. Why is this coming at this crucial time?
There are crises, but the crises are temporary ones. It is about struggle for power, it is about who is going to be the president and who is going to be the vice president. All these things will be sorted out between now and December. If the PDP is able to come out of its problems, next year is going to be a beautiful period for the party to showcase what it stands for. There is no ray of hope in what the present government is doing to alleviate our problems. Somebody has to solve the problem. If there are other parties that are strong enough to send out this government, good luck. But I can’t see them. PDP is the only alternative. With the crisis in the APC, everybody is strategically placing himself to win the election. We are sitting on a keg of gunpowder and people are struggling for power. It is very unfortunate. It is the reason terrorists are infiltrating our country. I wouldn’t start preaching what PDP can do and what it cannot do, but people are tired. The APC has disappointed an average Nigerian.
All things being equal, if the convention holds in October as scheduled, which zone are you expecting to produce the next Chairman of your party?
Politics is strategy. Everybody is watching one another. APC is watching PDP, PDP is watching APC. Everybody wants to win election. So, everybody will take strategic position based on what he or she thinks will favour him or her whether North or South. If you feel you can win if you present a Northern candidate, so be it. If you feel you can win with a candidate from the South, so be it. Let’s see how it plays out. The people that are strategizing are doing their work; I am not part of the team. But when the time comes, we know what to do.
What is the prospect of PDP in Lagos State?
We have to go back to the drawing board. We have to sit down properly and analyse the situation. We know that APC has failed in the state and at the national level. People are fed up. The only thing we want to see happen is that INEC and police should not compromise us. Let them do their work the way it should be done. If INEC is not compromised, definitely, PDP will beat them in Lagos State. We beat them silly in 2015; yet, they manipulated and changed the results. This time around, let INEC, the police, the DSS and other paramilitary agencies be careful. Things cannot continue like this. All these thugs that are carrying ballot boxes should go and sit down. If they do any nonsense, there will be trouble. Let them keep off the radar this time around. If the police and other security agencies do not collect money from any APC leader and they do their work as expected of them, definitely, we shall win the next election in Lagos State.