In the hypotherical scenario of a shooting war with a powerful adversary the first target will probably to hunt and destroy the biggest gun in the Nigerian army arsenal, the Palmaria 155mm Self propelled howitzer. Its the single hardest hitting weapon in the army's arsenal.

When rebel forces entered Tripoli in Augus 2011 they were pounded by shells fired from Palmaria 155mm SPG.

The Palmaria is the heavy hitter of the Libyan army. Libya, Nigeria an Italy are the only operators of this howitzer. Libya aquired 160 of these SPG in 1981.

The Nigerian army acquired 35 Palmaria 155mm Self propelled howitzers from Italy in 1983.

Maximum range is 24km. With rocket assisted projectile 50km. Maximum rate of fire 8 rounds per minute. The guns were so effective it sent panic stricken rebels fleeing on foot into the hot desert leaving behind their technicals.

In response NATO relased air assets to hunt down and destroy Gadaffi's fleet of 155mm Palmaria self propelled howitzers. Only then could rebel advance on Tripoli continue.

When Chadian rebels invaded and occupied 19 Nigerian islands in the Lake Chad basin the MiG -21 ruled the day and the Palmaria 155mm SPG ruled the night. The rebels knowing the MiG-21 lacked night fighting capacity dug in during the day and attempted to advance at night towards

Maiduguri. A battery of Palmaria 155mm lined up in firing position opened fire in the dead of night, sending panic stricken Chadian troops running right into the Lake. A 3rd of Chadian casualties were from drowning. What will send battle hardened rebels running into the desert

as happened in Libya or running into a Lake as happened in 83? Nigerians have no understanding on how artillery shells causes a flight or fight response. The human body was not designed to withstand such devastating force.There are three ways that artillery often claims victims

The most common is through fragmentation of the shell, when the metal casing is split into many smaller bits and hurled at supersonic speed in all directions. The one that sends fighters fleeing in panic however is blast wave. The sudden increase i pressure will damage tissue,

rupture eardrums, rupture your lungs or intestine and shatter buildings and vehicles if the round is close enough. So its not the deadly shrapnel or heat wave that drives soldiers to near insanity. Its the blast wave. Its almost like a themobaric effect.

A brick wall can protect you from shrapnel and heat. But blast wave keeps going and will break apart other things like the concrete or steel protecting you, or even your own body. After all, a blast wave that hits you hard enough will crush your skull much more easily than steel

This is what is likely to kill a tank or destroy a bunker. The Nigerian military for the first time ever only deployed the Palmaria against insurgents in September this year. You hear Nigerians with no understanding of these systems make remarks like "we had this all along

..and we are just employing them now. They want the Nigerian army to use a weapon designed with conventional warfare against a clearly defined enemy, in an urban enviroment, sometimes in civilian neighbourhoods.

The Nigerian army, like that of any army, including tthe U.S army might struggle against small group of fighters in an assymetric environment. However in a traditional battlefield the Nigerian army will crush any opponent in the region. It will be a one sided affair.

There is a reason our adversaries were quick to forged military cooperation with Paris during territorial the disputes. Counter Insurgency Warfare is a different dimension of war. Conventional arms like warships, cluster bombs, even tanks and heavy artillery have little utility

Most artillery deployed against Boko Haram are 109 mm pack howitzers or 122mm rocket artillery if you catch them in the open. Nigeria has one of the most fearsome artillery units because the sheer volume and knockout power it has.