IN
a major crackdown on insurgents, the Defence Headquarters on Monday announced
the arrest of 120 Boko Haram terrorists in Maiduguri, Borno State.
Determined to ensure lasting peace and security in the
crisis- ridden northern states, the Brigade Commander of 23 Armoured Brigade
Yola, Adamawa State, Brig.-Gen. Fatai Oladipo Alli, on Monday said that there
will be no hiding place for the insurgents, assuring that the military was
battle ready to crush terrorists.
Meanwhile, citing improvement in the security situation in
the state, Governor Ibrahim Gaidam of Yobe State on Monday relaxed the curfew
imposed in the state by two hours daily.
Similarly, the military on Monday began a three-day
meeting in Abuja with representatives of non-governmental organisations (NGOs),
media and paramilitary services towards achieving a common course in national
security operations.
In a related development, the Chairman of Abia State
Chapter of Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) and the presiding Bishop of
Glorious Life Gospel Centre, Aba, Rev. Goddy Okafor, on Sunday called on the
Boko Haram sect to take legal action against Nigeria to redress whatever their
grievances are against the country rather than resorting to violence.
Also, a Niger Delta activist, Joseph Evah, has called on
President Goodluck Jonathan to immediately dispatch his deputy, Namadi Sambo,
to the North to join forces with northern governors to tackle the lingering
insecurity in the area.
Director of Defence Information, Brig.-Gen. Chris
Olukolade, also disclosed that terrorists fleeing Nigeria towards Chad and
Niger Republic are being contained by Multi-National Joint Task Force in
various locations towards the border.
Olukolade explained that the 120 terrorists were arrested
when they converged in Maiduguri to bury one of their commanders who died in an
encounter with special forces on Sunday.
He confirmed that the arrested insurgents are in custody
of the Joint Task Force where they are being interrogated.
The Defence spokesman added that the military’s special forces
have now liberated and secured the environs of New Marte, Hausari, Krenoa,
Wulgo and Chikun Ngulalo, an area hitherto under the full grip of the
insurgents.
Olukolade stated that the area was liberated after the
military destroyed all the terrorists’ camps sited in those localities.
He said that the troops are already interacting with
locals and citizens, assuring them of their safety and freedom from the
activities of insurgents.
Olukolade also noted that “advancing troops also observed
a few shallow graves believed to be those of hurriedly buried members of the
terrorist groups.”
He stated: “Defence Headquarters has observed the use of
photographs purportedly taken in the areas covered by the operations and wishes
to state that the photographs are questionable as they do not reflect any
related reality of the social or geographical environment.
“This also makes the story they claim to depict of
Nigerians fleeing to Niger Republic and other countries doubtful. The media is
advised to always strive to associate stories with accurate pictures in order
to avoid misleading the public.”
The commander, who spoke Monday in Yola while addressing
the troops from 174 Battalion, Ikorodu, Lagos, that arrived the state Monday’s
morning said that more troops were on their way to Adamawa to smoke out
the insurgents from their hide-outs.
He said that the troops were to be deployed to the black
spots and the borders to restrict people from coming into the state, adding
that the action would cage the insurgents.
Alli, who cautioned the soldiers against harassing
innocent people, urged the troops to be firm and ensure that water-tight
security was maintained in the state for effective operations.
He stated that under no condition or situation would the
military compromise its constitutional responsibility of protecting the country
against external aggressors and maintaining peace and unity.
He further urged the people of the state to co-operate
with the military by giving them information that can lead to capturing more
terrorists in the state.
The decision to relax the curfew was reached at the
Government House, Damaturu, after the governor met with the Joint Task Force
(JTF) and heads of other security agencies in the state.
In a statement by the governor’s special adviser on Public
Affairs and Information, Abdullahi Bego, the curfew will now begin from 6.00
p.m. to 6.00 a.m. daily, until the security situation improves.
Bego added: “Governor Ibrahim Gaidam has today (yesterday)
approved an adjustment of the hours during which public movement is restricted
around the state.
Consequently, restriction on movement now starts from 6.00
p.m. to 6.00 a.m. daily throughout the state with effect from today, Monday,
May 20, 2013.
The governor urged the general public to continue with the
exemplary support and co-operation with security agents to ensure lasting peace
in the state.”
The meeting, jointly sponsored by Defence Headquarters and
Office of Security Co-operation of the United States (U.S.) Embassy, Abuja,
will help the military work out consensus on a workable civil-military
relations that will best address Nigeria’s current military challenges.
It is holding under the theme, Synergising all the
potentials for enhanced national security.
Declaring the seminar open, Director-General of National
Orientation Agency (NOA), Dr. Mike Omeri, asked the military to adopt a “less
conventional” approach “that is more integrative of other stakeholders in the
enterprise of security maintenance. This implies, therefore, that
peace-keeping as it is generally conceived, should be de-emphasised while the
concept of peace building involving continuous civil-military engagement
instead of waiting until there are episodes.” The three-day meeting ends
tomorrow.
Addressing journalists after a church service at Ogbor
Hill, Aba, in which Governor Theodore Orji was represented by his deputy, Chief
Emeka Ananaba and was attended by the Speaker of Abia State House of Assembly,
Chief Ude Oko Chukwu, among others, Okafor urged Boko Haram to note that
Nigeria belonged to all hence their destroying it would affect everybody,
including their members, friends and relations.
He expressed support for the state of emergency in the
three northern states, saying that the action was overdue as “people had waited
for such an action from Mr. President. Nigerians are anxious to see peace
return and I consider the President’s measure as one of the ways this desired
peace could return to the affected parts of our country that have been under
serious security threat and breach for some time now.”
Evah made the call in Lagos at the weekend during the
inauguration of the women’s wing of the Niger Delta Peoples Forum (NDPF),
asking that when the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua was in power and was
faced with the crises in the Niger Delta, he saw Jonathan as the best person to
champion the move for a ceasefire in the area.
Credits
To Madu
Onuorah, Mohammed Abu-Bakr (Abuja), Gordi Udeajah (Aba), Njadvara Musa
(Damaturu), Emmanuel Ande (Yola) And Obire Onakemu (Lagos) News -National
ngrguardiannews.com
