NAF: One Mistake Too Many
By Tahir I. Tahir Talban Bauchi
The renaissance of the Nigerian Airforce, NAF, has positioned it as one of the best in Africa, ranking 3rd, just behind the Egyptian and South African Airforce. Arguably, were there to be a new ranking, it would perhaps get ahead of South Africa’s. NAF’s acquisitions over the last 4 to 5 years have been phenomenal. NAF has purchased fighter jets like the A-29 Tucanos, the JF-17 thunders, T-129 attack helicopters, as well as 24 M-346 fighter ground attack jets. Othere include 10 additional AW 109 trekker helicopters. NAF has also taken delivery of four DA-62 surveillance aircraft. 50 brand new fighter jets are expected to be delivered between 2025 and 2026. NAF’s engineering power was also showcased as it revived a fighter aircraft that had been grounded for 23 years. NAF has witnessed a rebuild that it has never seen since it’s inception. The sophistication and the arsenal (not the football club o) it boasts of now, is proof that it really means business. With this level of armament, one is right to believe that the days of terrorism in Nigeria are numbered.
However, The sad reality of the operations of NAF in the last one year has been lack of precision. On the 3rd of December, 2023, there was a drone strike by NAF officials at Tudun Biri, Kaduna state, that claimed a lot of innocent lives. Reports say no less than 60 people were killed as NAF bombed innocent villagers. It obviously didn’t get its intel and coordinates right. Two weeks ago, there was another bombing of a community in Sokoto state which largely went under the radar. The casualty was minimal and it was reported that about 12 people were bombed erroneously by NAF as it tried to bomb some terrorists in the community. But then again, just yesterday, there was another error by NAF as it bombed about 20 people in Zamfara State, who are said to be officers of the Community Protection Guards, fighting terrorists in the state. Put together, the casualties are mounting, close to 100 lives vanquished innocently. The incidents are also piling, with 3 erroneous air interdictions carried out by NAF in just a year. For the 3rd finest Airforce in Africa, this is quite sloppy. NAF is not getting its surveillance operations and its precision techniques right.
These kinds of errors are what fall prey to political hawks who would manipulate these events, to denigrate the government and gain traction from their followers. These events would easily be picked as material for the narrative that the FG is running an anti-north program. NAF is not helping the govt in this regard. Our media space has long been filled with anti-north sentiments, as politicians try to control the narrative in their favor, pushing an early 2027 agenda. This is a very distractive and needless overheating of the polity, taking away the time and commitment to good governance. The President and the governors would be unwholesomely distracted from delivering democratic dividends to their people, trying to change or redirect these politically manipulative narratives. Thisday newspapers nicknamed Mr. President the resilient, as he has continued to pursue his economic reforms, despite the pushback from opposition figures. As resilient as he is, NAF is doing him a world of ‘bad’, with these erroneous airstrikes that are claiming innocent lives. Lives are lives, not northern or southern, but innocent Nigerian lives. They have the same value and sanctity.
NAF is obligated to find a solution to these erroneous and fatal air interdictions. It must deploy proper surveillance equipments to ascertain the location and definition of its targets. It must have precision in its strikes. Collateral damage may not be entirely eliminated from their operations, but it must be managed to the barest minimum. If strikes on terrorists claim a few innocent lives in the process, it can be deemed as collateral damage. But total knockouts on civilian populations are obvious errors that must be corrected. The Tudun Biri attack was a clear and obvious error in intel. The officers ought to have been investigated, and if found wanting, should be punished according to the degree of their negligence. The investigations should be made public, to dissuade any conspiracy theories around the accidents. Without accountability and transparency, these mistakes will continue to grow, and the casualties will grow to frightening figures. This makes it harder to explain away, and to get an understanding from the discerning public. I am not an expert on security, especially on Airforce operations, but then it is incontrovertible that hits on civilian populations, not once, not twice, are evidence that there are errors in judgement and technical capabilities. We are talking about human lives. The fighter pilot or drone operator has the same kind of life as that of the innocent person he erroneously kills. If he were to get killed in an operation out of error, the inquisition into his/ her death would be limitless. These inquiries must be extended to cover the loss of these innocent lives. He is not more Nigerian than they are.
NAF: One Mistake Too Many
