A startling revelation has been
made by concerned citizens of Borno and Yobe, two of the troubled states in
North-Eastern Nigeria.
Elders in both states are said to
have disclosed that Boko Haram militants get supplies delivered to them by
helicopter.
They also wondered how convoys of
vehicles used by the militants could move freely within the area despite the
curfew in place.
The elders, who spoke at a press conference in Abuja on Monday,
also asked the government to provide answer to the attack on the Maiduguri Air
Force Base by insurgents, who reportedly de-mobilised and set ablaze aircrafts
and other military facilities even with the existing state of emergency and
curfew in the town.
Speaking under the aegis of
Borno, Yobe People’s Forum, the elders also asked those in authorities to tell
Nigerians those that authorised the withdrawal of security personnel from the
Federal Government College, Buni Yadi, few hours before the recent attack that
claimed the lives of 59 innocent children.
A former Chief of Air Staff,
Air Vice Marshall Al-amin Dagash (retd.), spoke on behalf of the forum at the
press conference.
Dagash was flanked at the press
conference by a former Minister of Finance, Mallam Adamu Ciroma; a former
Secretary to Government of the Federation, Ambassador Babagana Kingibe; an
elder statesman, Shetima Mustapha and other political leaders from the two
states.
He said, “Are the authorities
unaware of helicopters dropping arms and ammunition, food and medical supplies
to areas well known to be strong holds of the insurgents?
“How were the insurgents able
to attack the Maiduguri Air-Force Base and demobilise as well as burn planes
and other military installations despite existing state of emergency and curfew
in the town? How could 20 to 30 Toyota Hilux vehicles move in a convoy freely
with subsisting curfew and still go undetected?
“How did a little band of
rag-tag misguided youths metamorphose into a well-kitted, well-armed killing machine
moving freely in convoy of vehicles and supported by helicopters.
“How did the Shilka Tank, a
multipurpose self propelled anti-aircraft artillery weapon, positioned to
secure Giwa Barracks, fail to function resulting in heavy loss of lives of both
civilian and military as widely reported in the media? Are we dealing with
fifth columnists in this crisis?”
He wondered how the insurgents
were able to kill Gen. Mohammed Shuwa, whom he described as a civil war hero,
despite the presence of a military detachment in front of his home.
The retired Air Force chief
asked the Federal Government to unmask those behind the “online media campaigns
of calumny stirring ethno-religious intolerance in the country.”
He also asked the Federal
Government not to extend the state of emergency declared in the three
North-East states, saying that the action had failed to achieve its purpose.
The state of emergency,
originally declared in May last year and renewed for another six months in
November, expire on April 19, 2014.
Dagash said that about 18
communities had been attacked by insurgents in the last one month with heavy
civilian casualties, adding that rather than abate, the insurgency had
continued to escalate and daring.
He said, “The continuous
bloodletting has led to the loss of over 17,000 lives. Official statistics
released by the National Emergency Management Agency revealed that over three
million people have been displaced by the insurgency and terrorist attacks in
the affected states of Borno, Yobe and Adamawa in the first three months of
2014 alone.
“Most of the victims are women,
children and the elderly. These developments underscore the urgent need for the
government, the international community, as well as all Nigerians to arrest the
brewing humanitarian crises in the area.”
No comments:
Post a Comment