No. There is no safe house. No house, no matter how protected, is safe. Every house, even Aso Rock or the White House, is vulnerable to internal and external attacks. External attack is not as deadly as internal attack. That is because the defense mechanisms within a house could withstand and stave-off the firepower of external aggression to the extent that the attackers could surrender, lay down their arms and take to their heels.
On the other hand, internal attack is the most vicious. Why? If there is no hatred, haggling and hassling within the file and rank of a household, external force cannot penetrate. In other words, if there were sound unity within the walls of a family, such a family would be indivisible. However, if a kingdom rises against its king, such a kingdom would collapse quickly than sand castle. If a wife joins hands with her children and in-laws against her husband, he would lose. If there are dissenting voices in a church with evil intent,peace cannot reign. If a company board turns the boardroom into a war-room there would be an implosion.
That is because in a household, a kingdom or a marriage, there are deep-seated feelings, shared secrets and happy moments. When members of the community are united, there would be unguarded moments; moments when the parties are relaxed, reclined, and released. Usually, that is when the enemy within strikes. Aside, the mere fact that the culprit understands workings of the ‘house’ like the back of his hands makes the household an easy prey.
This was the story of ‘Safe House,’ a movie starring Ryan Reynolds (a CIA rookie overseeing a Safe House in Cape Town, South Africa) and Denzel Washington (CIA’s most wanted rogue agent). In the movie, Washington was captured and driven to a Safe House: a house known to a privileged few and is safe from external aggressions; or so the CIA thought. However, mercenaries who needed Washington struck and overtook the Safe House. Bruised and battered, Reynolds and Washington managed to escape.
To be at peace, they need to do two things quickly: Stay out of the gunmen’s sight. Find another Safe House. Did they succeed? Yes, they found another Safe House. However, no, they could not stay out of the gunmen’s sight. Why? Washington, an international criminal, had files from renegade MI6 agent. The CIA wanted the files because the content could incriminate a top-level officer.Therefore, the files must be retrieved. The custodian of the files killed. That is why mercenaries were after Washington.
To lure him closer, the bigwig in the CIA created a semblance of security around him by asking Reynolds to take him to another Safe House. Reynolds did not know what was at stake. Washington knew. Meanwhile, the bigwig inside CIA controlled every move, every attack, and every gun-duel. The big wig was fighting from within. He was the insider enemy. He collaborated with external power to attack the CIA and turned the Safe House into an abattoir. When the Safe House was attacked again, Reynolds found himself on the run with Washington in tow.
They were running from enemy within and the mercenaries. As Washington told Reynolds in Safe House, “no one is safe.”Exact picture was painted in the US Consulate in Benghazi (Libya) recently where several American citizens and Ambassador Christopher Stevens were killed when gunmen attacked a Safe House. The attackers were protesting against a movie, which depicts Prophet Muhammad in bad light. The concern here is how did gunmen know about the location of that Safe House in Benghazi?
Definitely, there are enemies within the US Consulate working with the mob. Otherwise, it is usually near impossible for an outsider to have information about the location and security apparatus in place in an environment designed as a secure location. For, after the US officials had evacuated the Consulate by Libyan security forces, another wave of attacks were launched against US officials who had already been moved to a supposedly secure location.
Just as investigators said in a recent report, the attack was “calculated and organised”. Meaning, the mob had prior, privileged information, someone working in the Consulate with links with the mob spilled the bean. That is what makes an enemy within deadly. It strikes any time, when you are relaxed, reclined and released. That is what makes Boko Haram deadly too. It is an enemy within and without. It has links with some insiders. That is why Boko Haram attacks are usually “well planned.”
Boko Haram has attacked newspaper houses, churches, mosques, Police formation and other places in the country. However, the recent attack on telecommunications installations in the northern part of the country is further pointer that there is an enemy within. The implication of the attack is to severe communication flow, make it impossible for people and security operatives to dialogue, and thus paralyse activities in that region. Knowing the importance of telecommunication, the act of destroying the installations is targeted at the nation. Such thinking and action may not be too sophisticated for the sect to conceive and execute.
Nevertheless, it is an insider’s job. Someone or group on the inside is aiding the sect to perpetrate violent acts on the outside.In that light, Nigeria could be likened to a house and Boko Haram as the external aggression with help from the inside. As long as the collaborator within is uncovered, this house is not safe. Once our house is not safe, we, the occupants have no respite. As such, the insiders [who benefits from the acts of terrorism undertaken by Boko Haram] need to be over-powered. That is when the Boko Haram sect, its mindless act of maiming and killing would be forgotten like vapour.
In Safe House, Reynolds and Washington were running from the mercenaries, from gunmen.We all might as well start runningnow. If I cannot make a call to friends and family in the north and they too cannot reach me, are we not back to the dark days? MTN, Airtel, Glo and Etisalat have invested heavily to ensure telecommunication is as seamless as possible.
Quality of service may not be as perfect, tariff may not be as friendly, but we can comfortably make local and international calls from our bedrooms. What does Boko Haram sect have in mind by bombing the telecommunication installations? Does it want to make it impossible for you and me to communicate; or, it would rather return the nation to the dark pre-NITEL days?
Whatever is its agenda, we need to resist Boko Haram. The security operatives should re-strategise with the view to burying Boko Haram. If it cannot be buried, curtail it. If it cannot be curtailed, I do not know what else to do.
However, this I know: we need a hero, a hero to demystify Boko Haram, a hero to kill the wolf in sheep clothing in our barn, a hero to arrest the enemy within, and a hero to stop the blood-sucking god that is Boko Haram. That is what Reynolds did in Safe House. That is what our hero needs to do to make this house safe for you and me.
