This came as the Nigerian Air Force, NAF, yesterday said that
it had begun air strikes at the Sambisa Forest in Borno State
where the Boko Haram insurgents have their cells.
Meantime, security agencies are being hampered by their
inability to curtail the upsurge in ethnic and religious killings
in some parts of the Middle Belt states of Plateau, Benue and
Nasarawa states as well as Southern Kaduna, in Kaduna State.
The President, who was assisted by the Vice President and
spouses of the security chiefs, told them that they could not
afford to disappoint Nigerians at this critical time of the
country's history.
He said: "Whenever I am decorating military officers, I
commend their wives because it is not easy to be barrack-
based and for you to rise to this limelight. But for the service
chiefs, I don't know whether I should congratulate you or
sympathise with you because of the circumstances of the
moment.
"When I was in secondary school, I read one article written by
late Dr. Tai Solarin and there is one clause where he said 'I
wish you what I wish myself every year. May your road be
rough.' So I think I will wish you what I wish myself every
year and I say may we have enough hard time this period
because none of us will sleep until Nigerians in Borno State
can sleep.
"That is why I say, today is not a moment for major
statements. We will be having frank talks from time to time,
but definitely Nigerians will tell you what they expect from
us, we must not fail this country. I believe this team will work
together to be assisted by other intelligence services because
the war against terror must be won in this country.
"I congratulate you all and your wives. I have worked with
some of you in one way or the other and I am convinced that
we selected the right team."
Responding on behalf of the service chiefs, the Chief of
Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh, while thanking
the President for considering them worthy of appointment and
giving them the opportunity to be the first to be confirmed by
Nigerians via the National Assembly, assured that the service
chiefs would not fail him and the good people of Nigeria.
According to him, they will work in harmony to fight the
scourge of terrorism, kidnapping and oil bunkering, adding
that the military would continue to defend the nation's
territorial integrity and ensure security in the country.
NAF bombards Sambisa forest
The 79 Composite Group, NAF, in Maiduguri, Borno State
has intensified its efforts in the fight against Boko Haram
terrorists as its air operations have reportedly led to heavy
casualties on the side of the insurgents living in their cells
around the Sambisa forest.
The Group's Public Relations Officer, Squadron Leader Chris
Erondu said in a statement yesterday that "unperturbed by the
incessant threats by the Boko Haram terrorists in the North-
East, especially the insurgents' recent attacks and sacking of
many communities in Borno State, the NAF is increasingly
committed in the current fight against terrorism not only in the
state, but the country in general.
"Accordingly, in line with NAF's task to restore normalcy in
the city of Maiduguri, the 79 Composite Group had in the
couple of weeks been providing air support to other sister
security operatives of the 'Operation Zaman Lafiya' in the
state.
"Based on intelligence reports on the excesses of the Boko
Haram insurgents, our group in conjunction with the 75 Strike
Group, NAF, Yola deployed air platforms which carry out air
surveillance, interdiction and raid operations on identified
Boko Haram hideouts located at Bullabulin, Yujiwa,
Alagarno, Damboa axis of the state.
''As a results of these air operations, we have made
remarkable achievement as the insurgents, who are retreating
to neighbouring countries, such as Cameroon, Chad and Niger
Republic, have suffered heavy casualties, after destroying
their camps in the Sambisa forest."
Why security agencies can't curtail insurgents' upsurge
Vanguard investigations showed that apart from the inability
of security agencies to deploy personnel to the various
communities so far attacked, lack of or non availability of
equipment to assist in the tracking, monitoring and
containment of the hoodlums, who carry out the attacks and
disappear, was making efforts of the agencies herculean tasks.
The Boko Haram insurgents had been operating from the
various porous borders of the North-East, especially in
Adamawa, Yobe and Borno States, killing scores of innocent
Christians and Muslims, and fleeing the country without
arrest, even as the military which was implementing the
emergency laws had continued to take out those that strayed
into their areas of operation.
Middle Belt states challenges
In the Middle Belt states of Plateau, Benue, Nasarawa and
Southern Kaduna, Fulani herdsmen had also continued to
attack, kill and main citizens while revenge attacks by citizens
on 'settlers' have continued despite efforts of security
personnel.
At the weekend, an Islamic cleric, Sheik Mohammed Albani
was assassinated in Zaria for daring to question the wisdom in
the attacks being carried out by the Boko Haram adherents,
pointing out that there was nowhere in the Quran where their
actions were justified by Islamic injunctions.
Some security agents who spoke on the condition of
anonymity told Vanguard: "The hoodlums under whatever
guise, when they want to carry out sinister acts, go to
communities far off from the areas where troops and other
security agencies were stationed.
"Another thing is that because of the remoteness of some of
the communities, it is not possible to deploy our men to all the
communities."
Explaining that the way out was for government to acquire
more equipment for the NAF and the army because of the
terrain involved, the source said: "If the air force had enough
aircraft, for instance, they would be carrying out air patrols,
and then would be able to inform the ground troops to move
in and checkmate the attacks.
Obsolete equipment
"But even when the air patrols are carried out, sometimes, the
movement of troops to the scene of attack have been
hampered by obsolete equipment that were available to the
army.
"There have been instances where tyres' of military vehicles
like armoured tanks and other equipment had failed in times
of urgent need because most of them were worn out and had
not been replaced."
The source noted that but for the determination and dexterity
of officers of the armed services who, out of necessity carried
out local rehabilitation and refitting of some of the equipment
in use currently, the story of terrorism activities and other
cross border crimes, would have been unpalatable.
Disclosing that the budgetary process and the reluctance by
relevant stakeholders in the release of resources for equipment
acquisition especially modern military hardware which would
have made the fight better handled was also a major setback,
the source added: "Buying military equipment is not
something you get off the shelf.
"The weaponry has to be built to specification and involve
huge amount because they are denominated in foreign
currencies. I bet you, if the equipment are available, even the
Boko Haram insurgency people are talking about would have
been drastically curtailed."
Recalling that the last time the military were properly
equipped was in the 1980's during civil administrations, the
top shot said: "It is now that it is dawning on the country what
the past military administrations did to the military. They
virtually demobilized the armed forces. If not for the
rebuilding under this democracy, these hoodlums would have
thoroughly embarrassed the armed forces and the country.
"If the armed forces and the police are properly equipped and
insulated from politics, issues of procurement and acquisition
of weaponry, terrorism and other attacks on communities
would be checkmated."
Via: Vanguard
No comments:
Post a Comment