..Gov entitled to his opinion — DHQ
Borno Governor, Babagana Zulum, has expressed confidence that the menace of Boko Haram terrorism will vanish before President Muhammadu Buhari hands over in 2023.
He spoke with State House Correspondents on Thursday after a meeting with Buhari at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.
The Governor also disclosed no fewer than 30,000 repentant terrorists from the Boko Haram and Islamic State’s West African Province (ISWAP) groups have surrendered to the government so far.
He however clarified that the Borno Government does not offer any incentive to the terrorists to come out of the forests, stating they surrendered on their own.
Zulum disclosed that he discussed the continuing surrender of the insurgents and the case of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) with the President.
He assured the security situation in Borno State has improved considerably, hoping that things will continue in that direction.
Zulum’s remarks come barely 24 hours after former state Governor, Sen. Ali Modu-Sheriff, made a similar statement.
Modu-Sheriff, during a courtesy visit to Governor Bello Matawalle at the state Government House in Gusau, Zamafara State, expressed optimism at the elimination of terrorism and banditry.
According to Modu-Sheriff, “The peace accord and reconciliation process earlier initiated by the governor has made northern states enjoy relative peace.
”The measures taken against all terrorist enclaves will further clear the way for peace and tranquility to reign in the state.”
The former lawmaker also lauded the efforts of the Zamfara Government towards ensuring stability in spite of the security challenges.
”Borno and Zamfara share similar security challenges of terrorist attacks,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Defence Headquarters says it would not join issues with Zulum over his recent comment, saying if Islamic State’s West Africa Province (ISWAP) grows, Boko Haram insurgency would be a child’s play.
Zulum, had last week at the State House in Abuja, appealed to the Federal Government to urgently tame the growing threat posed by the militant group, ISWAP, as well as the military by changing war strategies before or else the Boko Haram insurgency could become a child’s play.
He had said, “This is an early warning system. We shouldn’t allow ISWAP to grow. ISWAP is more sophisticated, more funded and more educated. We should do everything possible to defeat ISWAP; otherwise, what Boko Haram did will be a child’s play.”
But when asked on Thursday to state the military’s position on the comment, the Director, Defence Media Operations, Maj.-Gen. Benard Onyeuko, maintained that the governor only expressed his opinion like every other Nigerian and it has been noted.
“Well, I wouldn’t want to join issues with His Excellency, Governor Zulum. He has made his observations like every other Nigerian, it has been noted. That’s all I can tell you,” the military spokesman said this while answering a question shortly after briefing the newsmen.
