- Famous Borno son and military critic arrested for questioning “technical defeat” of Boko Haram
- Monguno has also accused army authorities of always downplaying or denying the killing of soldiers by militants
- Dozens of critics have been arrested by the current administration, most in Kaduna and and some in Borno
By Rafiu Ajakaye
A retired colonel reputed for constant criticism of the Nigerian government’s handling of the Boko Haram insurgency has reportedly been arrested and kept incommunicado by the secret police.
Activists and family friends told Anadolu Agency that retired army colonel Husseini Monguno was arrested on Feb. 13 shortly after he granted a media interview reviewing Nigeria’s counterinsurgency strategies in the country’s northeast.
“They have since kept him incommunicado. Family members and his lawyer have had no access to him, while members of his immediate family are being threatened to remain silent,” Fulan Nasrullah, a security expert and family friend to Monguno, told Anadolu Agency on Saturday.
“The DSS (Directorate of State Security, or the secret police) despite enquiries have refused to formally confirm that they hold him, but informally they have sent emissaries to threaten the family to not talk to the press or make noise about his detention,” Nasrullah added.
He said no formal charges have been brought against him.
An online campaign titled #FreeHusseiniMonguno gained momentum on Twitter on Saturday, with activists flaying what they called a resort to draconian measures to silence critics of the government.
Arrested days bck bt yet to know his whereabout he was vocal durin d era of #BH he stood by us #freeHussainiMonguno pic.twitter.com/l9hHQ1idMc
— Wakil G.Bama (@wakss_wakilgana) February 20, 2016
Dan Borno, another prominent online personality, condemned on Saturday the continuous detention of the retired soldier.
“Arrest without trial is undemocratic. The government should free Husseini Monguno or charge him to court,” the activist said.
Anadolu Agency’s attempt to speak with his wife proved abortive.
Monguno was first attacked by suspect gunmen, one seen in photo below who tried to assassinate him last December. He was saved by the Civilian-JTF who he sent an alert to. This reminds us of how the Islamic movement procession was first bombed two weeks before the Zaria massacre by state security agents. -NewsRescue
Monguno has repeatedly decried government’s claim of having “technically defeated Boko Haram”, although his criticism of government’s handling of the insurgency dated back to the Goodluck Jonathan years.
The Nigerian government has claimed technical defeat of the militants but analysts like Monguno insist such claim is far-fetched in the face of continuous bombings and attacks on civilian targets in remote villages.
Monguno has also accused army authorities of always downplaying or denying the killing of soldiers by militants.
Spokesman of the secret police Tony Opuiyo could not be reached for comment.
And when you criticize they disappear you #FreeHussainiMonguno @zinadabo @FareedahDanful2 @Shehu_III https://t.co/9U8AU1gWl4
— Fulan Nasrullah (@FulanNasrullah) February 21, 2016
@fredricky We are back to the Dark Age…I thought PMB had changed, well I thought wrongly #FreeHussainiMonguno
— Osayangbon (@Claireonome) February 21, 2016
