Boko Haram: Army fighting criminals, informants- Buratai

The Chief of Army Staff, Lt. General Tukur Yusuf Buratai has said  what the Nigeria Army is facing in the Northeast  is criminality rather than the conventional Boko Haram that started in the region.

General Buratai who was reacting to questions at end of year dinner with editors and defence correspondents in Maiduguri disclosed that there are powerful people behind the Boko Haram crisis and have kept rebranding it.

According to him, the original Boko Haram that started has been dealt with it decisively but ” they keep changing their names like we have Islamic State of West Africa Province (ISWAP) now. I want to tell you that, even if we finish with ISWAP, those people behind these things will snowball to another name and they will go on and on”.

Buratai also  revealed that the insurgents are having a field day in their attacks due to their collaborators and informants who they use to monitor everyone including the troops.

The Chief of Army Staff also disclosed that the funding of Boko Haram has always come from the International connection,  citing the  example of how the Libyian crisis led to high influx of ammunition and aided the crisis in Nigeria.

Buratai explained that insurgents have different ways of funding and sourcing for equipment, including cattle rustling, kidnapping, and fishing in the Lake Chad.

 He called on the media to join the Nigerian Army in defeating every element of terrorism in the Northeast and the entire Lake Chad Region , adding that,  “with such collaboration, the propaganda which the terrorists devised to misinform and instill fear on the public and troops can be checkmated”.

Buratai expressed regret over what he described as deliberate falsehood and  campaign of calumny  staged  against the Nigerian Army by some social media platform which according to him is targeted at  demoralizing  troops to the detriment of national security.

The Army Chief warned that the army will descend heavily against such manner of campaigns with every legal apparatus, stressing that the war against the insurgents cannot be won by the army alone, but with the efforts of every citizen.

He called  on  media organizations to be objective by highlighting the achievements of the military against the insurgents and de-emphaising the falsehood and propaganda of the insurgents so as the educate the public.

Buratai while commenting on the army’s recent battle with amnesty international noted that; ” The allegations of human rights abuses against the military by Amnesty International, lack of equipment and nonpayment of allowances to troops are all misleading and not the true .

“The military authorities have established a human rights desk to promote civil military relationship and enhance justice system as well as reorganize various divisions,” he said.

He explained that  the dinner was organized to chart a new phase on  Military/ Media relations. He also  commended the media for its effective reportage of the campaign against insurgency as well as restoration of peace in the Northeast.

This Day Newspaper Editor,  Mr Bolaji Adebiyi  who spoke on behalf of other editors , thanked the Chief of Army Staff and the Nigerian Army for organizing the dinner which he said is a very good development in the Media/ Military relationship that will identify and  bridge the gap in media management.

The dinner was attended by Major.General . Lamidi Adeosun, the Head of Military Training and Operations; Major General. Benson Akinroluyo, The Theatre Commander of Operation Lafiya Dole and Brigadier General Abdulmalik Bulama Biu, Acting General Officer Commanding 7 Division, and other senior military officers.

Others were some representatives of United Nation agencies, Nigerian Guild of Editors and Nigerian Institute of Public Relations Practitioners.