The Nation Newspaper

Tag: boko haram

  • Lebanese abducted

    Gunmen suspected to be Boko Haram members abducted a Lebanese, simply identified as Hassan, on Monday, from his company in Sharada, Kano State.

    An eyewitness account said the gunmen stormed Hassan’s office on Plot 28, Sharada Phase l.

    The account added that the gunmen, who came in a black car, opened fire on sighting their target.

    In the commotion, his guard was shot in the leg while another woman was hit by a stray bullet.

    The account further stated that the gunmen did not take anything away, either from his car or office.

    Police spokesman Musa Magai Majiya said the police have launched a manhunt for the suspected kidnappers.

  • ‘Let’s adopt 1960 Constitution and parliamentary system’

    ‘Let’s adopt 1960 Constitution and parliamentary system’

    Afenifere chieftain Senator Olabiyi Durojaiye spoke with Assistant Editor LEKE SALAUDEEN on the proposed national dialogue, Afenifere crisis, insecurity in the North, the threat by the electoral commission to postpone elections in the troubled Northeast states in 2015, and its implications for democracy.

    President Goodluck Jonathan has declared that the national Ccnference will hold in 2014. Don’t you think that it will coincide with the preparation for 2015 general elections?

    Without being a prophet, one can visualise that something will give way. Either the conference will not be properly conducted for lack of time and concentration or that the people would be forced to ask for a tenure extension in order to do a thorough job on such a monumental and fundamental national assignment.

    I once participated in a constitution making exercise in a setting that was more orderly and peaceful than now. That was the 1998/89 Constituent Assembly, to draft, to debate and produce a Constitution for the country. The Assembly work took nearly nine months to complete. We went to examine and debate clause by clause a draft constitution earlier prepared by professionals/expert legal draftsmen to produce the 1989 constitution. That straight forward exercise took about nine months to complete.

    Mr President may be smarter than some of us might imagine by luring those of us who have been clamouring for constitutional conference, right from our NADECO and Afenifere hey days to go headlong into constitution conference in 2014, which will be a very busy year for party congresses, national conventions and campaigns for the early 2015 elections. On the face of it, we would be “estopped”, having clamoured for the national conference for so long, only to turn around to say we don’t want it. Mr President had shown a deft hand at this chess-like type of game. It is like boxing us into a corner to say no to what we have been clamouring for over three decades.

    But, we would be a foolish fish to take the bait and the hook together because we must not bite than we can chew.

    There is no way we can complete the job. For the while essence of the conference is for the people in their various ethnic nationalities and clans, professions and vocations to come round and deliberate on how best we can live together in a modern democratic society based on a true federal setting where residual powers are vested in the federating units. For what we have today is a unitary form of government under the guise of being a federal republic.

    The dilemma is the unfortunate fact that in our own clime, which is unlike the established democracies like Britain or the United States, where certain state policies are pursued by whatever political parties take over after an election. For instance the state policy of Britain towards the European Common Market has never altered despite the change of government from Conservative to Labour back to Conservative. Similarly, U.S policy towards Israel and Britain has been virtually the same, whether Republicans or Democrats are in power.

    Now that you have said the delegates to the national conference would not have enough time to do a thorough job, what do you suggest?

    It is tempting to suggest that the national conference be postponed to the latter part of 2015. To avoid such a volte face and the risk involved in it is to suggest that the government should adopt the 1960 Constitution, the draft of which was debated and agreed by the founding fathers of this nation, that is the Azikwes, the Awolowos, the Sardaunas, the Balewas,the Aminu Kanos, the Anthony Enahoros etc.

    Fundamental issues such as true federalism, residual powers in the federating units, derivation and resource control have been well thrashed out in the 1960 Constitution. What the new constitutional conference will do is to modify the fundamental basics already settled in the 1960 Constitution and making adjustment to take care of major environmental changes such as three regional governments and a federal government and over 35 million people. We should now have six geo-political grouping or states and one federal government now that we are about 150 million people.

    Although the 1960 Constitution is a parliamentary one , the proposed national conference should be charged to consider returning to parliamentary system of government which is believed to be less expensive, less corruption-prone than presidential system we have practised for many years.

    The PRONACO headed by late Chief Enahoro also produced a draft constitution that may be worth considering being based on the 1960 Constitution.

    The Chairman of Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared that elections may not hold in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states, unless the security situation there improves in 2015. Is it right to disenfranchise the people?

    A prudent man needs to be very careful in castigating aspersion on what others say. There must always be a benefit of doubt that the person one is criticising may have some facts known to him, which may be unknown to the critic. Having said this, I find it difficult to agree with the alleged statement of the INEC Chairman knowing that Boko Haram even exist before the 2011 elections. Why didn’t he say because of terrorists’ threat/Boko Haram activities in Plateau, Kaduna and other parts of the country where Boko Haram activities had already manifested before May 2011, there should be no election. Technically, postponing election in the three states amounts to disenfranchising the majority of the citizens from those parts of the country. Since everyone in those areas could not be Boko Haram terrorists, it stands reason to believe that only a few people are terrorists. They are in minority and government cannot because of that deny law abiding majority in those states their constitutional right to vote and be voted for.

    Another issue is to ask whether it is not the responsibility of government to maintain law and order as well as to ensure security of live and property of every citizen. A famous political philosopher, Thomas Hobbes opined that a man is supposed to live in an organised society where law rules but the life of a man who lives outside an organised society is short, nasty and brutish. It could appear to be an admission of failure of government or any of its strategic agencies to deny the people of their right for the inability of government to provide security, law and order.

    One doubts, if the INEC Chairman could have made such a far reaching statement without clearance from government . Another inference that is obvious is that government may be planning to allow election in only areas where it can win since these three states happen to belong to the opposition party- All Progressives Congress (APC). The government should come out to dissociate itself from the INEC Chairman’s statement.

  • Son of a Bitch

    On December 21, 1988, that is, a quarter of a century ago, a Pan Am Flight 103 with 243 passengers and 16 crew members exploded into shreds in the evening skies above Lockerbie, Scotland. In a twinkle of an eye, all the people on board including 35 students of Syracuse University, New York State and 11 more on the ground, perished.        Last Saturday, memorial events took place simultaneously in Britain and the United States to mark the 25th anniversary of the tragic bombing which devastated hundreds of families on both sides of the Atlantic. The day was marked with services of remembrance at Westminster Abbey, London and at Dryfesdale Church, Lockerbie. Services were also held at the Pan Am 103 Memorial Arcade in Arlington National Cemetery and at Syracuse University in New York State.

    The Lockerbie terrorist attack has so far remained the deadliest act of terrorism on British soil and probably surpassed by the September 11, 2001 terrorists’ attack on the World Trade Center in New York, the United States of America. And back home in Nigeria, today’s Christmas day marks the third anniversary of the 2010 bombing of St. Theresa’s Catholic Church at Madalla, Niger State. The bombing of the church, which was packed full of worshippers at the ceremonial service to commemorate the birth of Jesus Christ, led to the death of over 44 persons, while about 75 others sustained serious injuries.

    Perhaps, nothing can be greater than the fact that the anniversary of Madalla bombing is being marked this year with the conviction of a major character in that unfortunate episode. Last Friday, barely five days to the third anniversary of that gruesome Christmas Day massacre, a Federal High Court in Abuja slammed a life sentence on Kabiru Umar, also known as Kabiru Sokoto, the mastermind of the act.

    Umar was first arraigned on April 19, this year, on a two-count charge bordering on terrorism. He was accused of training over 500 men on how to manufacture and detonate Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) and having prior knowledge that the Boko Haram sect planned to bomb the church on Christmas day, but failed to disclose it to any law enforcement officer. He was also accused of having facilitated the perpetration of terrorist acts, including planting bombs at the Police headquarters and some government organisations between 2007 and 2012, at Mabira Sokoto, Sokoto State. Throughout his eight-month trial, Umar’s puerile defence was that the government failed to establish a prima facie case capable of warranting his trial and conviction.

    But the presiding Judge, Justice Adeniyi Ademola, thought otherwise. While delivering judgment in the case, the Judge held that the court found as a fact, the statement that Umar was the mastermind of the 2010 Christmas day bombing, adding that he did not controvert the evidence brought against him.

    Justice Ademola further held that the court agreed with the prosecution that the case against the accused person had been proved beyond reasonable doubt, adding that, the two statements of the accused person were admitted in evidence without opposition from the defence counsel.

    Justice Ademola held that the accused was a “pathological liar,” who deceived the court that he did not understand English Language when it was evident before the court that Umar had four credits in the West African School Certificate Examination (WASCE) and also worked as a Laboratory Scientist. The judge also faulted the attitude of the accused during the trial, adding that he did not show any remorse. Accordingly, Justice Ademola sentenced Umar to life imprisonment on the first count and 10 years on the second count, which should run consecutively.

    The judge also urged the security agencies to investigate the circumstances surrounding Umar’s arrest in the Borno State Governor’s Lodge in Asokoro, Abuja.

    He said members of Boko Haram had permeated all levels of government. According to him: “Indeed, the police have a duty to investigate and bring other persons involved to book. It is imperative that security forces finish off this investigation so that we can get to the root of this.”

    Umar was first arrested by the Police in Abuja on January 14, 2012 at the Borno State Governor’s Lodge after arriving at the Lodge in the company of a Flight Lieutenant in the Nigerian Air Force and one Ibrahim, who had sought and got approval by officers in charge of the lodge to spend the night there.

    Ibrahim had allegedly called the lodge officer who was away in Maiduguri, seeking to be given a room for the night, which he was obliged. But he came to the lodge that Friday evening along with Umar and the Air Force man. Security agents, who had been on Umar’s trail since he was declared wanted, traced him to the lodge that night and arrested him.

    Surprisingly, Umar was declared missing from Police custody two days later. His escape raised eyebrow in security circle. The police later came up with an explanation that he escaped when he was being taken to his home at Abaji, a suburb of the Federal Capital Territory, for a search by Zakari Biu, a Commissioner of Police. The police had said that a gang of youths flagged down the vehicle conveying Umar as it was heading for the Ona of Abaji’s palace, thereby creating chaos during which he escaped.

    His controversial escape from police custody was one of the factors that ultimately led to the removal of Hafiz Ringim, the then Inspector-General of Police, while Zakari Biu, who was in charge of the operation that led to Umar’s escape, was suspended from the Force on Tuesday, January 17, 2012. Biu was made to face an orderly room trial before he was later thrown out of the force with ignominy while a nationwide manhunt for Umar’s apprehension was declared. This paid off when he was later re-arrested in Taraba State by operatives of the State Security Service.

    Getting the conviction of Umar within a record time of eight months is a good sign that justice can still be speedily delivered in a country replete with various acts of injustice or where justice is hard to come by. Therefore, this judgment is a commendation for both the law enforcement agencies and the judiciary, which has again proved itself as a bastion of hope for the common man, particularly the victims of the Madalla senseless bombing. It is hoped that this judgment, although coming three years after the savagery was committed, would provide the necessary impetus for security agents to work hard to unmask those responsible for the killing of innocent Nigerians through terrorist acts wherever they may be.

    However, beyond bringing Umar to book, security agents should work assiduously to bring other perpetrators of this heinous crime to justice. It is also important for the government to go deep to unravel the root cause of this growing satanic behaviour, which has almost turned the country upside down. Just like many people have proffered in the past, beneath the insurgency that has continued to rattle the country and give it a bad name in the comity of nations, is endemic poverty which has eaten deep into the fabric of the nation.

    Of course, bad governance and inequitable distribution of our common patrimony may have bred this untoward situation through social disequilibrium. Suffice it to say that our policy makers need to tackle corruption, which is the bedrock of our national malaise, if this generation and generations yet unborn will not be permanently condemned to perdition.

    The case of Umar, who was arrested right inside a Governor’s Lodge in the company of a serving military officer, underscores the collaboration of some unscrupulous security agents with those who are determined to wreak havoc on the corporate existence of the country. Furthermore, the role of the Zakari Bius of this world in Umar’s escape from custody shows that really, as President Goodluck Jonathan admitted sometimes ago and this column pointed out last week, there are indeed moles within the country’s security apparatuses. This is dangerous for our national existence. We need to rise up as a government and as individuals to protect our country from the vagabonds who are hell bent on pulling us down.

  • 2015 polls: Adamawa, Borno, Yobe’s fate hangs

    2015 polls: Adamawa, Borno, Yobe’s fate hangs

    The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Attahiru Jega, has declared that elections may not hold in three Northeast states in 2015, owing to the security challenges. Assistant Editor LEKE SALAUDEEN examines the implications of the proposed fractional elections for democracy.

    Perilous times are around the corner for democracy in Nigeria. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INDEC) has alerted that, unless the Boko Haram insurgency is nipped in the bud before 2015, elections may not hold in the troubled spots in the North. Its Chairman Prof. Attahiru Jega, ruled out elections in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states, if the security challenge persists. He said the commission may be compelled to postpone or cancel elections in the affected areas.

    Already, the Federal Government has declared a state of emergency in the three Northeast states due to the Boko Haram insurgency.

    According to the 2011 voters register, the Northeast has over 10 million voters. The three states under the emergency rule have 5.5 million registered voters. Borno is credited with 2.2 million voters; Adamawa 1.7 million and Yobe 1.1 million.

    The implication of the INEC decision not to hold election in the three states, if the security situation does not improve, is that voters in the troubled stateswould forfeit the right to elect their governors, federal and state lawmakers. Another implication is that the three states would not participate in the presidential election. The question is: can the presidential election be conclusive, if the three states are excluded? Also, will the President appoint administrators for the states in 2015?

    Analysts agree that peace is a pre-requisite for a free, fair and credible election. This is because voters should be able to move freely to cast their votes on election day without fear or intimidation. Critics say Jega’s warning was too early. They noted that the state of emergency, which was renewed for six months on November, is expected to expire in April next year. The 2015 general elections will hold between January and February, eight months after the expiration of the emergency period. Is INEC predicting that the emergency period will be permanent?

    Another school of thought has submitted that the umpire has accorded prominence to the dreadful sect over and above national sovereignty, instead of encouraging the Federal Government to create an environment devoid of violence.

    A lawyer, Chief Niyi Akintola (SAN), said Jega’s statement is a signal that there is danger ahead of 2015. “It is a wake-up call on the leaders to speak out on the situation in the country”, he said. Akintola said that if a fractional election holds in 2015, democracy will be in jeopardy. “The statement is very unfortunate. If the INEC Chairman can say that elections would not hold in certain states in 2015, especially when those states are controlled by the opposition, then, we are getting the results of the presidential election, ahead of 2015”, he added.

    The legal luminary urged Nigerians to resist the move, saying that it is a bad omen. “The leaders of this country must speak up and call Jega to order. The 2015 elections is very crucial to the survival of this country. We should not sit on the fence and allow political charlatans and their official collaborators to plunge this country into chaos”, he advised.

    Another lawyer, Ajibola Bashir, expressed a similar view. “Does it mean the security situation in those states would not change before 2015? Will there be no governors in those states after 2015? Does the state of emergence cover every part of the three states in question?”, he queried.

    Bashir challenged Jega to tell Nigerians whether the poll can be credible, if some states are excluded. He said the umpire made the statement without sparing a thought for democracy. “It appears he didn’t make consultation with his legal advisers before making such a sensitive statement. Nigerians should watch the body language of the INEC, considering its role in the Delta senatorial by-election and the bungled Anambra State governorship election. The INEC officials may be acting the script of a political party for 2015”, he said.

    A lecturer at the University of Lagos, Akoka, Dr David Aworawo, submitted that Jega had led out the cat from the bag by sensitising the polity on what it is required by the government to perpetuate itself in power. He said the electoral agency was offering to the government an excuse to postpone the poll and achieve tenure elongation.

    “Now that Jega has given a condition that, unless security situation changes in the Northeast zone, the commission would not conduct elections in the affected states, the media should continuously put the security challenge in the North on the front burner and put pressure on government for an improvement. If Jega had not raised the issue now, it would have taken us unaware in 2015 and that could have led to catastrophe”, he added.

    A banker, Malam Bukar Shuaib, said he was not surprised by the statement made by the INEC boss. “We in the Northeast know that President Goodluck Jonathan has a motive other than the restoration of peace in declaring a state of emergency in the three states”, he said.

    Bukar said the Federal Government may not lift the emergency rule before the 2015 elections for political reason. “The three states are governed by the opposition party. If elections are not held in those states, it would be to the advantage of President Jonathan and his party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). I won’t be surprised, if the President declares a state of emergency in states like Kano and Sokoto before 2015 to decimate the fortunes of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

    “I don’t know how the INEC would conduct the presidential election without some states participating and come up with a result that would reflect the decision of every part of the country. Both the Federal Government and the INEC should know that Nigerians are very sensitive about the 2015 elections. Any attempt to rig or bungle the election would be resisted”, he added.

    Afenifere chieftain Senator Olabiyi Durojaiye disagreed with the INEC, saying that its fear about insecurity in the Northeast is unfounded. He said that any attempt to postpone elections in the states amounts to disenfranchising a section of voters from the zone. The politician said that not everybody in the states are members of the Boko Haram sect.

    “Only a few people are terrorists. They are in the minority and the government cannot because of that deny the law abiding majority in those states the right to vote and to be voted for”, he said.

    Durojaye said that the fundamental duty of government is to provide security of life and property and maintain law and order among the people, adding that the corresponding duty of citizens is to obey the law and discharge their civic responsibilities.

    The security situation in the North, the politician said, appears to be an admission of failure of government, urging the President to rise to the occasion.

    A youth activist, Shehu Danjuma, said the INEC should not hide under the state of emergency to disenfranchise the people. He said the latest pronouncement of Prof Jega was in tandem with the familiar strategy of the Federal Government to prolong insurgency in the Northeast.

    According to Danjuma, the plan is to prolong the emergency rule and use it as an excuse to disenfranchise voters in that zone because the government knows it cannot win a free and fair election in those states.

    The youth leader urged the Federal Government to resolve the crisis in the Northeast and the country in general. “We need a peaceful, free and fair election in 2015. We will resist any attempt to disenfranchise Nigerians under any guise. Instead of disenfranchising citizens for no fault of theirs, the Federal Government should tackle insecurity in the North”, he added.

  • Shettima briefs Jonathan on Bama attack

    Borno State Governor, Ibrahim Shettima Tuesday  briefed President Goodluck Jonathan at the Presidential Villa on the recent attack by Islamic sect, Boko Haram at the Nigerian Army’s 202 Tank Battalion in Bama, Borno State.

    The sect, who attacked the barracks with improvised explosive devices and petrol-bombs were repelled by the military.

    Speaking with State House Correspondents after the meeting with the President, the governor denied the allegation that the barracks was deserted.

    The report, he said, was false.

    He said: “Women and children normally during crisis are moved to safer locations but the soldiers are on ground, they are right now in Bama and are doing their job very well”.

    On whether the crisis was far from ending, he said that the Federal Government was doing its best,

    “I am just here to brief Mr. President of what transpired in Bama, I believe that very soon this issue will be frontally addressed and it will be a thing of the past” he said

    Shortly after the attack, President Goodluck Jonathan had held an emergency security meeting with service chiefs and the Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Abubakar.

    The meeting was held shortly before the President decorated 48 newly promoted Major Generals in the Army, Navy and Air Force at the Command Officers’ Mess, Asokoro in Abuja last Friday.

    According to him, the nation was going through trying times, stressing that every Nigerian must join the efforts in the fight against terror.

  • ‘Boko Haram buried weapons in Apo cemetery’

    ‘Boko Haram buried weapons in Apo cemetery’

    The Chief of Army Staff, Lt Gen Azubuike Ihejirika, has said the Army has information that some arms and ammunition were buried in the Apo Cemetery, Abuja, by some Boko Haram members.

    He said the Army had been unable to locate where they were hidden because the person who hid the weapons was on the run.

    Gen Ihejirika said the weapons were to be used in an attack on Abuja by the sect earlier this year.

    The Army Chief spoke yesterday at a public hearing by the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on the September 20 killing of eight residents at an uncompleted building in Apo.

    Security personnel had invaded the house, said to be inhabited by about 100 people, on the claim that the inhabitants were Boko Haram members.

    Gen Ihejirika, who was represented by the Commander, Brigade of Guards, Maj Gen Emmanuel Atewe, justified the invasion of the house.

    He said the operation in Apo was informed by a report from the Department of State Security (DSS), alleging an attack by members of the Boko Haram.

    “Between September 18 and 19, two persons were arrested in Abuja and they made useful confessions that there was a cache of arms hidden at Apo Cemetery to be used in a planned attack,” he said.

    The Army chief said upon the confession of the suspects, his men went to the cemetery in search of the weapons.

    “It was in the night, the area was bushy and we could not navigate the cemetery and the suspects could not identify the actual spot where the weapons were buried.

    “It was at that point the suspects said their leader, one Suleiman, if arrested would show us the spot where the ammunition were hidden,” he said.

    Gen Atewe, who failed to name the “two suspects,” said they told security agents that Suleiman was living in the Apo uncompleted building. He said they (the suspects) also disclosed that their intention was to launch attacks within Abuja.

    “It was on that premise that the team moved to the uncompleted building to arrest Suleiman. But unfortunately, as troops were to cordon the building, the fire came, first it was a single shot before rapid followed. Under self defence, the troops returned fire,” he said.

    “The military operating in FCT are well trained in handling arms and have exercised restraint in the discharge of their duties. We have no reason to kill anybody dastardly or act under provocation.

    “The adversaries did firearm movement, they were firing as they escaped, a loaded magazine was found and from our records, it does not belong to the military,” he said.

    Gen Atewe stated that the Apo incident was an isolated case and an unfortunate one.

    He insisted that the security agents acted proactively to prevent collateral damage that may have resulted from an attack in Abuja.

    He said despite their efforts, Suleiman was still at large and the cache of arms at the Apo cemetery still undiscovered.

    “We have carried out 153 operations successfully, made arrests and did not shoot anybody.

    The NHRC yesterday granted an application by the DSS to have its officials testify in its headquarters to protect their identities.

    DSS’s lawyer Clifford Osagie and other officials of the service cited security reasons for the application to have the panel move its sitting venue from the NHRC’s Abuja office to DSS’ headquarters.

    The panel will resume sitting next month.

  • Boko Haram: Nigeria may reach out to France, Cameroun

    Boko Haram: Nigeria may reach out to France, Cameroun

    •Intense diplomatic option begins

    •Nigeria may deploy drones along borders with Cameroun

    The Federal Government is in the process of reaching a tripartite diplomatic/defence collaboration with France and Cameroun in containing the insurgency of the Islamist sect, Boko Haram.

    The proposal is already being worked on, The Nation gathered yesterday in Abuja.

    The development was triggered by the latest attacks on military formations by Boko Haram from new bases in Cameroun having been largely driven out of Nigeria in the wake of the military onslaught.

    The diplomatic collaboration is expected to be managed in a way that Cameroun will not be hurt by the effects of the onslaught against Boko Haram in its territory.

    Sources also said that the Federal Government might deploy drones against the insurgents next year following intelligence reports that the insurgents have created new bases and platforms in Cameroon.

    “They relocated in spite of the fact that in October, the Camerounian gendarmes killed more than 180 Boko Haram members,” a military source said.

    “They find it difficult to cope again in the country because more than 500 coordination bases/cells of the sect had been destroyed in Borno and Yobe states.

    “So, we have a situation in which they now come from Cameroun to lay ambush on villages and major roads to kill innocent citizens.”

    Sources said that government has therefore resolved to collaborate with France and Cameroun on how to address the security challenges posed by the insurgents along the Cameroonian borders.

    It was gathered that the issue featured in the discussion between President Goodluck Jonathan and French officials during his recent trip to Paris.

    With him on the trip was the National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki.

    Nigeria believes it has a lot to benefit from the French operation in Mali against terrorists and expects that the Mali experiment will be extended to the Camerounian borders with Nigeria.

    Cameroun, sources said, has been a bit circumspect in giving its support because it does not want to be fully drawn into the Boko Haram insurgency to avert any consequence on its security.

    But one of the sources said that in a sub-region like ours, a threat to one country is a threat to another and therefore it will be in the interest of Yaounde to co-operate with Abuja in checking the Boko Haram threat.

    A Multinational Task Force is said to be already in place but the target is the ‘final phase’ of the campaign against the insurgents.

    Meanwhile, the Federal Government may consider the use of drones along the borders with Cameroun to check the insurgents.

    This is part of anti-insurgency plans in 2014 in order to make the North-East safer.

    Sources said the use of drones comes with less casualties and maximum impact because it would help the military in pre-emptive coordination.

    “I think from next year, the Federal Government may deploy in drones. The truth is that the battle is almost won against insurgency in the North-East except for the shift of Boko Haram base to Cameroun.

    “The drones have worked well in Niger Republic and we may adopt same with the ongoing ground and air strikes.”

    For the second time in two months, Boko Haram members, at dawn on Friday, invaded and shelled Kuru Mohammed Barracks in Bama, Borno State with rockets.

    The sect had in October launched another deadly attack at a military checkpoint close to the Nigerian border with Cameroun, leading to the killing four security operatives.

    The death toll of the latest attack was unclear as at press time but the Defence Headquarters claimed that it was still taking stock.

    Ground and air troops have already been deployed in Bama to repel the insurgents.

     

  • Borno is not about Boko Haram alone, says Shettima

    Borno is not about Boko Haram alone, says Shettima

    Governor Kashim Shettima of Borno State says there are many good things in the state other than the Boko Haram insurgency.

    Shettima, speaking at the 2013 Press Week and Northeast zonal meeting of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) in Maiduguri, said the state is better now than it was two years ago and that the current insurgency will soon fizzle out.

    “Most Nigerians have imagined fears about Borno mainly due to what they hear or read as news about us. I am sure that our visitors now have a different or less scary opinion of Maiduguri,” he said.

    “You must have seen the traffic on the roads contrary to impressions you might have formed that roads were empty; you must have seen commercial activities in place as against fears you might have had that no businesses existed.

    “You might have seen some projects, few I must say, from what we are doing across the state; in sharp contrast with an impression you might have had that government was at stand still.”

    He asked the journalists to tell other Nigerians and the rest of the world what Borno is and not what it is thought to be.

    He added:”Borno is not all about Boko Haram and I will call on the media to tell more of our real stories. There are many good things happening in Borno State on all sectors.

    “I am glad that Maiduguri is today safer than it ever was in the last two years and the rest of the state is also picking up even though we still have some challenges we are working very hard to surmount.”

  • Military hunts terrorists after daring barracks attack

    Military hunts terrorists after daring barracks attack

    Soldiers yesterday surrounded Abbaram village near Bama, Borno State to flush out terrorists who fled there after reportedly snatching soldiers’ wives and children during a daring attack on an army barracks nearby on Friday, witnesses said.

    Suspected Boko Haram fighters stormed the barracks in Bama early on Friday, spraying it with bullets before torching the compound.

    AFP reported that several Bama residents said that the insurgents also abducted several of the soldiers’ wives and children during the attack.

    Army spokesman in Borno, Mohammed Dole, declined to comment on the matter while the Defence Headquarters Director of Information, Major General Chris Olukolade, could not be reached for comment.

    Bama residents said the Boko Haram gunmen fled to Abbaram after the attack, where the military sent hundreds of troops yesterday.

    “The soldiers have besieged the village and more troops are deploying in hundreds,” said Ibrahim Idris.

    “Nothing is happening yet, but from the huge number of troops deploying and the large number of Boko Haram in the village one can imagine what may happen.”

    Karim Bunu, who also lives in Bama, described Abbaram as a village of some 250 people.

    “We are afraid of what will happen to the people of Abbaram because whichever way one looks at it, they are facing a serious security threat,” he said.

    A third resident, who requested anonymity, said the Islamists were holding in Abbaram the “women and children of soldiers,” who had been kidnapped during the Friday attack, in an account supported by both Idris and Bunu.

    In November, Human Rights Watch reported that Boko Haram has increasingly used kidnappings as a tactic, abducting scores of women and children this year.

    After staging an attack on the military, the insurgents typically flee to far away camps to evade pursuing troops, but their escape was slowed on Friday by fighter jets which dropped bombs on the major routes leading out of Bama, according to the military and witnesses.

    “I counted 18 burnt all-terrain vans belonging to the Boko Haram gunmen pulverised by military jets,” said the unnamed resident, who identified himself as a member of a military-backed vigilante force which has formed in the northeast to fight the insurgents.

    Air force jets continued to fly over the region yesterday, residents said.

    The Bama attack was the second major Islamist assault on the army this month.

    Boko Haram’s four-year insurgency has killed thousands.

    The group has been declared a terrorist organisation by the United States.

  • Jonathan meets Service Chiefs over Boko Haram attacks

    *Decorates 48 newly promoted Army Military Generals

    President Goodluck Jonathan Friday  held an emergency meeting with Service Chiefs over the latest Boko Haram’s attacks in Bama, Borno State and other security issues in the country.

    Before decorating the 48 newly promoted Major Generals in the Army, Navy and Air Force yesterday, he attended the meeting with the Service Chiefs and the Inspector General of Police, Muhammed Abubakar at the Command Officers’ Mess, Asokoro Abuja.

    He noted that the nation was going through trying times and demanded all hands to be on deck in order to ensure the protection of lives and property in the country.

    The President charged the newly promoted officers to go the extra mile to justify their new positions.

    He said: “It is a very challenging moment. I remember when I came in, I had a meeting with the Service Chiefs and Inspector General of Police because what happened in Bama . It is a very challenging period in this country and we expected, as we say that those who more is given, more is expected.”

    “For those of you who have been so decorated as full two-star Generals, we expect that you will bring your experience to bear. We must work together as a team to make sure that the armed forces are able to protect lives and property of Nigerians. If we cannot do that, the reputation of the country will continue to go down.

    “A number of issues are being raised in the media, there is so much of challenge in the Armed a Forces and other security agencies in the country. All of us collectively must stand up for our own responsibilities and go the extra mile to see that as a nation, we overcome these challenges,” he noted

    “It is not easy to wear two stars. It is almost the terminal position in the armed forces. Any other one is by the grace of God. To be so decorated as a two-star General, you must have passed through storms, endured several winters. Your wife must have also been well baked to survive this period.” He said