Fela's nephew jailed over Boko Haram attack

The dreaded Islamic sect Boko Haram launched another attack on Thursday 15th October 2015 and killed hundreds of people, overrun a military base in an attacked believed to be one of the sect most dreaded attack.

As a result of the attack by the sect on Baga in January this year, senior Nigerian army officer and nephew of Afrobeat legend, Fela Kuti, has been jailed for six months after allowing weapons to fall into the hands of Boko Haram Islamists during a deadly attack on Friday.

Brigadier General, Enitan Ransome-Kuti was convicted at a five-member court martial in Abuja on Thursday for “loss of equipment” during the attack in Baga, Borno state, in January, 2015.

The officer was also convicted of failure to discharge his duties but cleared of a third count of “cowardly behaviour”, Kuti's lawyer, Femi Falana told AFP.

The attack on Baga, on the shores of Lake Chad, saw the town and surrounding villages, overrun and destroyed by hundreds of Boko Haram fighters, including a military base.

Militants were later seen in a propaganda video picking through the armory at the base, which was used by troops from Nigeria, Niger and Chad.

Hundreds of people are said to have been killed in what was seen as the Islamists worst atrocity in the six-year insurgency, although there is no exact death toll.

Falana said Ransome-Kuti had been in custody for six months and should be released for time served but the conviction and sentence had to be confirmed first by a military panel.

According to Falana, an appeal would be lodged, as it was “contradictory” to convict his client of losing equipment but clear him of cowardly behaviour.

“Boko Haram outnumbered his men. They had more superior weapons than the unserviceable equipment of the Nigerian Army” which prompted the withdrawal, Falana added.

In a recent development, The U.S has deployed about 300 troops in neighboring Cameroon to provide intelligence support in the battle against the dreaded Islamist sect.

The terror group has claimed over 17,000 lives since its emergence in 2009 and displaced millions.

The Nigerian army has recently said it’s not relenting in its effort to permanently destroy Boko Haram and would not spare any official who fails to discharge his/her duty in the fight against Boko Haram.

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