Christmas: Group Hails Military’s Defeat of Boko Haram in Northeast

Concerned Professionals Congress, CPC, has commended the military and other security agencies for last Sunday’s and Christmas eve’s massive defeat of Boko Haram insurgents in Biu, Borno State and Damaturu, capital of Yobe State, in the North East.

The civil advocacy group praised the troops’ gallantry, describing the successful operations as another proof that they have effectively pushed Boko Haram and the Islamic State of West Africa Province (ISWAP) out of the Nigerian territory in spite of asymmetric hit-and-run attacks.

The group stated this in a joint release issued in Abuja yesterday by its Chief Media Strategist, Mr. Emeka Nwankpa and the Northern Regional Rapporteur, Kasim Baba Kasim, praising the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Abayomi Gabriel Olonisakin and the service chiefs for driving effective machinery and fire power to rout the insurgents.

There were widespread reports recently of fierce shoot-out in which troops of Operation Lafiya Dole and men of the Civilian-JTF under the coordination of the Defence Headquarters (DHQ) effectively repelled the insurgents in Damaturu last Sunday and killed 48 Boko Haram fighters on Chritmas-eve in Biu leaving some of the sect’s members fleeing with severe gun-shot wounds.

DHQ’s spokesman, Brigadier-General Onyema Nwachukwu told reporters in Abuja last Monday that the Nigerian military had effectively pushed Boko Haram and ISWAP into hibernation in Tombus Islands within the neighbouring Republic of Chad and Republic of Niger from where he said they launched hit-and-run attacks on soft targets. He emphasised that no Nigerian territory was under the terrorists groups.

Governor Mai Mala Buni of Yobe State praised the military and the security joint forces for effectively repelling the Boko Haram fighters who invaded Damaturu last Sunday, citing the troops’ courage and determination as responsible for the sustained onslaught that denied the insurgents the chance to unleash terror in the state capital.

The group called for more public support for the military and other security agencies across religious, regional, political and governmental levels in the country, cautioning against what it called careless public statements and narrations in some quarters that are capable of giving publicity to Boko Haram.

‘’There is no better time than now for all Nigerians across divides to give support to our military and other security  forces currently combating Boko Haram, ISWAP, kidnappers, cattle rustlers and other criminals fighting against the peace, security and stability of the country.

‘’The Federal Government has no greater duty than defending the Nigerian people, the Nigerian territory, and Nigerian interests including promoting its peace, prosperity, well-being, security and stability. Today, even as the optics are getting more challenging, it is good news that our defence forces have contained and restricted these extremist and criminal gangs to the fringes’’, Nwankpa said.

‘’The choices we make today and in the immediate future have profound and lasting consequences for our security, liberty and prosperity. We must therefore square up to the challenges now and this is what the CDS, the service chiefs and their team of patriotic officers are doing for the Nigerian people,’’ Nwankpa said.

The group observed that the several successes recorded by the troops were fallout of the policy of inter-agency synergy, collaboration and cooperation efficiently driven by the Defence Headquarters under the CDS, General Abayomi Olonisakin.

It maintained that the entire Northern region would have been lost to the terrorists if the counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism operations were not being courageously and vigorously executed by the armed forces.

The group disclosed that the successful series of military onslaught on the insurgents is a bold testament to the deliberate policy of jointness being driven by the leadership of the nation’s top military command under the CDS, General Abayomi Olonisakin.

It praised President Muhammad Buhari for his confidence in the capacity and competence of the armed forces to dislodge criminal elements to guarantee the security, stability, peace and unity of the country.

‘’We commend the energetic Chief of Defence, General Abayomi Gabriel Olonisakin. His unique style of leadership rooted in jointness, synergy and inter-agency cooperation has galvanized the entire national security architecture to effectively tackle Boko Haram and other national security threats’’, he said.

The advocacy group urged remnants of Boko Haram to drop their arms, saying that their days ahead were numbered. It maintained that time was fast running out on them in the light of the re-calibrated counter-terrorism operations.

It charged Nigerians to close ranks and fully support the military and other security forces by volunteering credible, useful and timely information to aid ongoing operations to rid the country of criminal elements in the interest of the security, unity, stability, health and sovereignty of the nation.

‘’We should remind ourselves where we were and where we are now and what happened in-between. The Borno State people know what our military and other security agencies have done in the past years, paying the supreme price to deliver peace to the people. It could have been worse’’, he said.