From Okwe Obi, Abuja
The Rebirth Coalition has warned rumour mongers against dampening the morale of the Nigerian Army with the spread of fake news in the fight against banditry.
Its Convener, Oladapo Bolaji, and Secretary, Hassan Danladi, in a statement on Thursday, said that the criminals who are feeling the heat of military operations have resorted to propaganda to demoralise troops of the Armed Forces of Nigeria and instill fear in the populace.
Bolaji particularly appealed to the Nigerian media to support the military in their reportage.
He claimed that the recently reports that soldiers were caught sharing ransom with kidnappers should be discarded as it was spearheaded by enemies of the country.
“This is among several rumours emanating from the camp of the enemy. They will ultimately fail as Nigerians will not fall for their antics.
“If any of such incident took place, the military from our observation know how to handle them.
“We in Rebirth Coalition are Nigeria citizens who took it upon ourselves to do critical analysis of the security.
“We found out that the enemies want to put fear in the lives of the citizens and use the opportunity to cause havoc.
“We suspect the enemies may also be alarmed at the recent commendation from the EU for the Gen. Leo Irabor led Armed Forces of Nigeria, hence their resort to fake rumours.
“The Coalition said these issues are not unexpected in a crisis situation, but it should not be blown out of proportion, saying the enemies of the country will never win the war when the people are United.
“In the North East, every day, our assessment of ongoing military operations show massive surrendering by terrorists and bombardments of those that refuse to surrender.
“We are gradually seeing the return of the Chibok girls. This is a result of intense military operations by our troops.
“We particularly enjoin the media not to give space to our collective enemies. A society approach is what we need. Our troops continue to sacrifice their lives, what they need from us is prayers and every necessary support,” he said.