By Basil Okoh
“After We Captured the Real Leader of Boko Haram, I Was Retired, Arrested, and Detained” – Major General Danjuma Ali-Keffi Speaks Out
In a dramatic and deeply revealing letter to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, retired Major General Danjuma Ali-Keffi has shed light on what he describes as a disturbing turn of events following a major breakthrough in Nigeria’s fight against terrorism.
According to the senior officer, after successfully leading an elite task force that apprehended key figures within the Boko Haram insurgency—including what he called the “real leader” of the terror group—he was not celebrated, but instead met with retaliation: compulsory retirement, arrest, and 64 days of solitary confinement.
Ali-Keffi, who once commanded the Nigerian Army’s 1 Division and served as the General Officer Commanding (GOC), was handpicked to head “Operation Service Wide,” a presidentially sanctioned counter-terrorism investigative team.
The operation reportedly uncovered not only the masterminds of Boko Haram but also a network of financiers, including senior government officials, military officers, and top financial institutions.
“The moment we arrested some of these individuals and started exposing the financial pipelines of terror, the backlash began,” Ali-Keffi revealed in his correspondence. He contends that powerful interests within and outside the government moved swiftly to suppress the operation and silence those behind it.
Even more shockingly, the General raised concerns about the tragic death of Lt. Gen. Ibrahim Attahiru, Nigeria’s late Chief of Army Staff, who died in a plane crash in 2021. According to Ali-Keffi, the late COAS was determined to go after terror financiers and had endorsed the work of Operation Service Wide.
The General subtly implied that Attahiru’s death may not have been accidental, urging President Tinubu to revisit the incident and open a transparent investigation into both the crash and the broader sabotage of anti-terror efforts.
The allegations made by General Ali-Keffi, now in the public domain, have ignited calls for accountability. While the federal government has yet to issue an official response, the implications of his testimony are profound. If true, they point to a deeply entrenched system where fighting terrorism is undermined from within, and brave efforts to protect the nation are punished rather than praised.
Ali-Keffi’s whistleblowing has added a new dimension to Nigeria’s complex security challenges. His story raises urgent questions: Who truly benefits from the prolonged war against insurgency? And why are those fighting it from within the system being silenced?
Until these questions are answered with transparency and courage, the nation’s fight against terror may remain compromised—not by lack of will or strategy, but by internal betrayal at the highest levels.
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