THE TRIALS OF MONGUNO

Alfred Ndukwe writes that the virulent attacks on the NSA, Monguno, are unfortunate

The National Security Adviser, Babagana Monguno, a retired Major General, is once again a victim of orchestrated media attacks. What many Nigerians see are symptoms of the media attacks. They do not see the faces behind the attacks and the evil intents of the architects of the media lynching.

Monguno is by nature taciturn. A thoroughbred military professional who is not given to charlatanry or garrulous jests. A consummate strategic thinker and astute manager of men, this explains why he was able to work effectively with the immediate past President, Muhammadu Buhari, himself an ascetic, frugal retired General.

A man of the character of Monguno who runs away from headlines and media blitzkriegs suits his job. He has remained largely self-effacing, limiting himself to his office, the president’s office and strategic international trips. You won’t find him frolicking at rendezvous, hobnobbing with politicians or making political utterances; a man of quiet efficiency. Such is the nature of Monguno and such should be the character of an intelligence officer, especially one at the zenith of his career.

President Buhari had during his time alluded to the efficiency of Monguno as a major contributory factor to his government’s tactical and technical defeat of Boko Haram insurgency and the bold reclamation of annexed local governments in Borno State from the insurgents.

The successful conduct of elections in parts of the north which were security-challenged in 2019 and 2023 owe largely to the counter-terrorism dexterity of Mungono who gave Buhari and the leadership of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) iron-cast assurance of relative peace during the polls. It is therefore safe to say that Monguno’s surveillance and counter-terrorism measures led to the emergence of the Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu Presidency and other elected leaders including governors and lawmakers across the country.

Ahead of the 2023 elections, for instance, some Nigerians had predicted doom and gloom. Some even propounded the likelihood of the formation of an Interim Government, a constitutional aberration. But Monguno’s Intelligence masterstroke calmed feisty tempers and defused every tension. In the wake of wanton destruction of lives and property occasioned by the proliferation of illicitly acquired small arms and light weapons, Monguno midwifed the establishment of the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons to promote an illicit arms-free society. The Centre is fully operational and is recording tremendous successes. Gen Monguno has also built two magnificent and iconic state-of-the-art office complexes for the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) and the National Counter Terrorism Centre (NCTC). The NCTC is intended to optimise efforts in addressing evolving security challenges especially terrorism and violent extremism. And here we are; a new government of renewed hope has berthed on our democracy shore.

Perhaps, it’s the disappointment of those baying for pre-election trouble that is now driving them to shoot down Monguno and tarnish the reputation he has built over the years which has earned him copious commendations and validations both at home and from international intelligence agencies. Monguno’s traducers are taking advantage of his unobtrusive nature to taint his image before President Tinubu.

This is why many persons within the security circle are peeved at the attempts by some retired Generals to garb Monguno in a filthy garment using a particular online medium notorious for smear campaigns and blackmail against public office holders. A former Chief of Army Staff and Chief of Air Staff were touted as the brains behind the recent scheme to tar Monguno in the darkest of veneers. They have scripted a devious narrative to pitch Monguno against President Tinubu to score cheap political point. It’s the same campaign of calumny that they orchestrated against the NSA in the days of President Buhari using some persons in Aso Rock. Their plot was to get Monguno out of their way as they shamelessly and insensitively turned the fight against insurgency into a money-making enterprise to enrich themselves and their backers.

In March 2021 in an article published in Sunday Sun newspaper and other newspapers captioned: Monguno, Saint Among Sinners; Ken Ugbechie, a courageous Nigerian journalist and columnist wrote: “Monguno is the archetypal saint among sinners. Those who vilify him for alerting the nation to a structural dysfunction in the security apparatchik obviously do not mean well for Nigeria. The war against insurgency has cost the nation blood, human blood. It has cost money, stymied the economy, stunted education and learning, polarised the nation along traditional fault lines of religion and ethnicity, chased away investors and cast a pall of fear across the land. Every well-meaning Nigerian wants an end to it. Monguno is merely echoing the voices of these well-meaning Nigerians. His is a patriot’s rousing, jarring us out of our self-induced numbness.”

The above referenced the attacks on Monguno by some hirelings whose shenanigans to oust the NSA from Buhari cabinet failed. It’s on record that Buhari trusted Monguno. Despite the schemes of a ruthless cabal to persuade then President Buhari to dismiss the NSA and install one of their stooges, Buhari stuck to his gun. He did not only ignore the plot to remove Monguno, President Buhari gave him a wider sphere of influence. Those familiar with the undercurrents in Aso Rock and its extended corridors said Buhari’s confidence in Monguno has so much to do with the integrity of the NSA, his professionalism and sterling antecedent in the military. Even when service chiefs were changed, Buhari retained Monguno as NSA, knowing full well that his efforts to galvanise and coordinate the relevant security agencies is sine qua non for effective dismantling of the structures of the insurgents.

Those who are scheming for political positions in the Tinubu government should continue with their jostling; but they need not smear Monguno to get what they want. It will be a disservice to the Tinubu government and to the nation that those who were dismissed by previous governments on account of their inefficiency would scheme their way into the Tinubu cabinet. Instead of appointing previously dismissed military chiefs into his cabinet, President Tinubu should carry out a forensic inquest into how money meant for procurement of military hardware was spent in the past years. The former Chief of Army Staff, Lt. General Ibrahim Attahiru, who died in a plane crash on May 22, 2021 in Kaduna had so much to say on the procurement of military hardware before he died that fateful day. But his briefs and executive summary are still in the National Assembly. President Tinubu should excavate these files to see who played what role in the purchase of arms on behalf of the federal government.

As for Monguno, the NSA should consider the virulent attacks on his person as part of the price he has to pay for success and for standing with the voiceless people of Nigeria. The media mob is evidence that he has ruffled feathers. It shows that some powerful persons who were used to feasting on public funds rather than fighting the insurgents are not happy with him. This should never dampen his spirit; rather, it should fire him up to do more for his country.

 Ndukwe, security analyst, writes from Lagos