From Oluseye Ojo, Ibadan
The Chief of Army Staff, Lt Gen Tukur Buratai, has assured Nigerians that the military is working very hard to completely eliminate Boko Haram insurgency in the country.
He gave the assurance yesterday during his one-day familiarisation tour of the 2 Division of Nigerian Army, Adekunle Fajuyi Cantonment, Odogbo, Ibadan.
According to Buratai, who was earlier received by the deputy governor of Oyo State, Otunba Moses Adeyemo, at the Governor’s Office, Ibadan, “Nationally, you are aware very much of our efforts in the North East as well as North West. We have done a lot and we are still doing a lot. Our troops are doing very well in the North East, fighting Boko Haram terrorists.
“Terrorism is a global phenomenon. It may seem unending but I want to assure you that here in Nigeria, we are working hard to ensure that the Boko Haram terrorists are completely eliminated.
“We still have some remnants of them but we are closing up and clearing them by the day.”
Buratai, however, stated that for the country to totally wipe out Boko Haram, it requires the support of everybody, adding that the insurgents live among the people and they are everywhere.
“This requires much intelligence to fish them out. But the most important thing is to get them out, and prevent them from building the capacity to launch attack on innocent individuals and in deed on our troops.
“In the long run, it will require a long term planning, long term surveillance and long term intelligence gathering so that the remnants can be picked, apart from those that will show up with their weapons, which we are dealing with right now,” Buratai said.
He attributed the success recorded in the campaign against Boko Haram insurgency to the political commitment of President Muhammadu Buhari, the government, the leadership of the military, and the troop on ground as well as support from Nigerians.
Buratai stated that the Motorbike Battalion established by the Nigerian Army has added more capacity as well as the ability to move quickly to wherever insurgents are, adding: “We have identified a number of actions to be able to get them before they (insurgents) could even go out to wreak havoc in their hideout.”