Wives, children stop military trucks conveying soldiers to fight Boko Haram

Hundredsof women and children weekend forcefully stopped military
trucks from conveying their husbands and fathers to the Boko
Haram-seized Gwoza by locking the exit gates of a barracks in Borno
State, demanding quality fighting equipment for the soldiers.

Scores of soldiers have been killed by Boko Haram in Borno State in
the last few months, and many blame the inferior weapons Nigerian
troops are equipped with to fight brutal insurgents.

According to witnesses, after locking the gates, the women and
children placed themselves as wedges before the trucks that were to
drive out of Giwa Barracks of the 21 armoured brigade Maiduguri.

One woman was quoted as saying, "we don't want to be made another set
of widows, give our husbands modern and better arms, weapons and
vehicles or they go nowhere!"

The reaction came after nearly 60 soldiers killed in Gwoza and Damboa-
both in Borno State- were given a mass burial at the Maimalari
Barracks Maiduguri.

The women and children also reportedly blockaded the roads leading to
the barracks with stones and sticks, while some sat in front of the
barracks' gate.

Some soldiers at the barracks said they were in support of the action.
One soldier who chose to remain anonymous told newsmen that "we are
ever ready to tackle Boko Haram terrorists but our superior officers
are not helping us by not giving us the right arms to execute the war.
How can I go and face Boko Haram with AK47 that is charged with only
three cartridges when the enemy is brandishing modern GPMG, AA, RPG
and so on. Most of our soldiers die every day like fowls because of
faulty deployment and yet when you complain they only tell you to obey
the last order."

Another soldier said, "we are being pushed to death because we usually
run out of ammunition or our weapons would fail us during an
operation, while the Boko Haram who came fully kitted with better arms
and extra supplies would continue to pick on us like insects."

According to another: "We are ready to finish Boko Haram in one week
because we have the courage to do that if we are given the right arms
and ammunition."