My first encounter with Strategic Spiritual Intelligence (SSI) was in 2019 when I attended a leadership course in “Criminal Intelligence and Intelligence Management Circle” at the Defence Intelligence Agency in Abuja. OBC Nwolise of the University of Ibadan, a Visiting Professor at the Nigerian Army Resource Centre, delivered a paper titled “Strategic Spiritual Intelligence, (SSI) in the Intelligence Process.” His paper elicited debates among participants drawn from the military and para-military organisations. Prof Nwolise argued that to date, most nations rely on Strategic Empirical Intelligence (SEI). This is based on human, and technological capacities manifested in: Human Intelligence (HUMINT), which is espionage by professional intelligence agents; Signal Intelligence (SIGINT) that involves the intersection of signals; Electronic Intelligence (ELINT); Measurement and Signature Intelligence (MASINT) obtained from technical sensors; Radar Intelligence (RADINT); Infra-red Intelligence (IRINT); Nuclear Intelligence (NUCINT); Foreign Instrumentation Signal Intelligence (FISINT); Imagery Intelligence (IMINT) obtained from the analysis of images; and Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) which is obtained from data in super highways of satellites, computers, speeches, publications, and others. The SSI, however, is yet to be properly explored.
Prof Nwolise observed that because today’s defence and security trends feature irregular actors that deploy irregular methods, it has become imperative that the state and its defence and security agents either upgrade or remain incapable of being at par with or ahead of the irregular actors. At this point, many of us in the hall adjusted in our seats in unease. That was not all. He gave an example in the Sierra Leonean Civil War, where the Kamajor militia was well known for the display and deployment of magical powers. He said “The members were known for their efficacious and rigorous initiation processes, and abundant use of protective charms as part of their dressing. The members were spiritually fortified to the point that they could charge at and vanquish the enemy with confidence, and walk into and out of the barrage of bullets and artillery fire without a scratch on their body.” This was when it dawned on us that we were in for an interesting lecture.
I recall one of the participants, a senior military officer, interjected him by asking how strategic spiritual intelligence could be used by the military to address security challenges in the country. His response was confounding. He said, “the fact that the adversary uses Strategic Spiritual Intelligence in their nefarious operations, the state and its defence and security agencies must move a little higher to be on top of the adversary by deploying Counter- Strategic Spiritual Intelligence (C-SSI), and even Counter-Counter-Strategic Spiritual Intelligence (C-C-SSI). According to Prof Nwolise, “Strategic Spiritual Intelligence is secret information obtained advantageously as foreknowledge, from divine sources and other credible spiritual entities to achieve the security, peace, development, welfare and happiness of peoples and nations.” He said the main sources of SSI are God, Angels, prophets, pastors with prophetic anointing, imams, alfas, rabbis, local deities, priests of local deities, ancestors, spirits of the dead, and personal dreams. At this point, goosebumps littered my body. I was lost in thoughts in rationalising between Strategic Empirical Intelligence and Strategic Spiritual Intelligence in warfare.
After the encounter with Prof Nwolise, I researched further on Strategic Spiritual Intelligence and it culminated in a paper I published in an academic journal in 2024. It was titled “The Role of The Supernatural in Warfare: An Analysis of Strategic Spiritual Intelligence in Conflict Management in Nigeria.” I argued that the role of the supernatural and spirituality in human affairs has been an age-long phenomenon. Africa, Asia, Europe and the Americas at one time or another had depended largely on the metaphysical for the explanation of the physical. I also argued that many people in Nigeria either profess Christianity or Islam and the doctrine of spiritual warfare is well entrenched in religious doctrines. Thus, the concept of spirituality in warfare is not a new phenomenon. Perpetrators of conflicts in Nigeria, be it bandits, kidnappers, insurgents, militants and the like, also deploy the efficient use of strategic spiritual intelligence by conjuring, divining and offering sacrifices for the successful prosecution of their aims.
Also, in a paper titled “Peace, Security and Territorial Defence: An Examination of Traditional Defence Mechanism of the Ebira People, 1850 – 1950,” Enesi, PhD, argued that if strategic spiritual intelligence were officially and legally allowed as a form of intelligence-gathering mechanism, the issues of conflict would have been nipped in the bud. Using Ebiraland as a case study, Enesi outlined the basic rudiments of Ebira’s traditional conflict management mechanism which include preventive, ameliorative and palliative. He said “One way this ethnic group prevents conflict is through the annual divination called Eva-irayi in the shrine which is always at a mountaintop called Ori. In this ritual of sacrifice at the beginning of the Ebira new year, the gods through the chief priest will inform the people of what is expected in the year be it good or bad. If it is bad, the people through the chief priest will ask for preventive measures called Eero. The gods will inform the people processes how to ensure it is prevented.
There are also numerous examples of the deployment of Strategic Spiritual Intelligence in managing conflict across the country with each unique method of implementation. Another example could be gleaned from a historical account of the Igala-Benin war in 1515-1516 during the reign of Attah Ayegba Oma-Idoko. In the early 16th century, the Igala Kingdom was at war with the Bini Kingdom. Attah Ayegba Oma-Idoko consulted the oracle, seeking a solution to save his kingdom.
The oracle decreed that the only way to defeat the Bini Kingdom was to sacrifice his daughter Princess Inikpi by burying her alive.
The Attah was heartbroken but couldn’t find an alternative solution. Princess Inikpi, noticing her father’s sorrow, asked about the reason behind his sadness. When she learned of the oracle’s decree, she voluntarily agreed to sacrifice herself for the sake of her people. Princess Inikpi was buried alive at the bank of the River Niger and saved the Igala Kingdom from destruction. That was strategic spiritual intelligence.
Interestingly, the slogan of the Nigerian Army is “Victory Comes from God Alone ” This is an indicative statement that recognises the role of the supernatural in warfare. And if that is the case, what has hindered the recognition and adoption of strategic spiritual intelligence as part of a national strategy in addressing the myriad of security challenges in the country thus far? I align with the idiomatic expression that desperate times demand desperate measures. In times of crisis or extreme need, unconventional or drastic actions may be necessary to resolve the situation. It implies a sense of urgency and willingness to take risks.
Going back to the position of Prof Nwolise, he gave examples in human history that have demonstrated the relevance and workability of Strategic Spiritual Intelligence. He mentioned the conquest of France by Germany in the Second World War, where Nostradamus had predicted that France would fall to a foreign power that would invade it through a forest. During the Second World War, French political leaders and Generals thought that no army could march through the Ardennes Forest between France and Luxemburg. Goebels’ wife who was fond of reading Nostradamus saw the prediction, showed it to her husband, and from there, Adolf Hitler ordered Nazi German Forces to march on France. The German forces moved into France within 72 hours leading to French surrender. He also highlighted how Nostradamus had warned King Henry II of France not to go into his usual annual ritual combat when he attained the age of 41 years. The King ignored this warning, despite all the advice and reminders from his wife. He went into ritual combat, at the age of 41 years, and died from it.
There are invaluable lessons on the role of the supernatural in warfare. It is non-kinetic. Make no mistakes, strategic spiritual intelligence is utilised at personal levels by security operatives, and I am not aware of a ban by the government. We must have seen security operatives tying a red cloth at the muzzle of their riffles. It is believed that it neutralises fortifications which defy science, deployed by adversaries. If non-state actors in warfare recognise and utilize it to their advantage, what is the government waiting for? The government according to Prof Nwolise must deploy a Counter- Strategic Spiritual Intelligence, and even Counter-Counter-Strategic Spiritual Intelligence. It is just like insurgency and counter-insurgency. What is good for the goose, is also good for the gander. Unexpectedly, “spiritual conmen” could make a spontaneous industry out of this the same way they pollute altruistic intentions. This is a caveat.
– Ocheja, a scholar, specialises in the intricate military histories of Nigeria and Africa.
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