No Territory is Occupied by Boko Haram, Buhari Insists

Source: THISDAY LIVE

Again, President Mohammadu Buhari has stated that no part of the Nigerian territory is under the occupation of the Boko Haram insurgents, just as he promised to redouble his government’s efforts to fight the insurgents.

This came as European Union announced a donation of $50 million for Nigeria and the countries within the Lake Chad Basin to fight terrorism.

The president reiterated his position yesterday when he welcomed the President of Germany, Mr. Joachim Gauck, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

Buhari said the Nigerian military had succeeded in decimating the terrorists who had hitherto occupied some local government areas in the northeastern part of the country.

Speaking during a joint briefing with his guest, Buhari regretted that his German counterpart was welcomed by the news of attacks in Dikwa, Borno State, by the insurgents.

He, however, stated that the terrorists had resorted to attacking soft targets, having been pursued out of their base by the Nigerian Army.
The president said the challenge facing the government now was to relocate and rehabilitate the victims of insurgency.

He said: “It is a pity Boko Haram welcomed you with explosions in Borno that took so many lives, but I have attempted to explain in so many forums that Boko Haram is not what it used to be.
“While they were firmly holding 14 out of 774 local governments areas when we came in, they are not holding any local government for now.

“What they have resorted to is using improvised explosive devices to cause maximum casualties on soft targets as they did yesterday, doing what they are capable of doing now.

“But for them to organise conventional attacks on military, police installations and take hold of towns, I think they are not able to do that. They send groups to go and kill vulnerable targets.

“Having said that, our efforts have to be redoubled to make sure that the people in IDP camps are rehabilitated especially the children. More than 60 per cent of the two million people in IDP camps are women and children and more than 60 per cent of the children are orphaned.

“Some of them don’t know where they came from, they don’t know their parents. This is a pathetic situation the leadership of this government is facing because the least we should do is to quickly resettle those children, and if possible try and identify their neighbourhoods,” he said.

Buhari, who thanked Germany for its assistance to Nigeria in the anti-terrorism war, also commended the European country for the quality of jobs of its construction companies in Nigeria.

“I am pleased with the response from the G7, from the United States to Europe.  Training teams have been sent to our institutions. Help has been sent, but what we are doing is to try get assistance for our own committee under General T. Y. Danjuma in the area of infrastructure.

“We also thank Germany for the help they extended to making sure that the last election was a success. We thank them for the help they are giving us in terms of what happened during the Ebola and polio scourge.

“We would also like to mention to the president and their companies that their quality of jobs are appreciated by Nigerians. We know it is at a price, but the important thing is if you get our jobs very well done, then it saves you so much in terms of maintenance,” he said.
He also appealed to the German president to assist Nigeria to get a permanent seat in the United Nations Security Council.

“Outside bilateral ties, in the United Nations, Nigeria an African country feels that we are qualified by our numbers, by our size, by our position in Africa to have a seat in the United Nations Security Council. We hope that Germany will support us,” he said.

Also speaking, the visiting president thanked Buhari for the reception accorded him.
He said Germany would assist Nigeria in the war against the insurgency and announced a donation of $50 million to the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF).

“We indeed had a very fruitful exchange today, permit me to express my condolences in the face of the attack on the IDPs yesterday
“As regards my visit, I am grateful for being invited and being given the opportunity to know the country and its people and to talk to you about how we can further intensify and deepen our bilateral relationship.

“Nigeria is indeed a very hospitable country with impressive people and the spirit of hope of a country being on the move, I was very impressed by that.

“I had the opportunity to visit Lagos and now I’m delighted to be in Abuja. It is very important for me to let you know that we believe and we see in you, one of our most important partners here in the region and in your country. When it comes to developing the region at large, your country plays a major role and at the same time you are facing major challenges.

“We are hoping for a peaceful change and that makes it easier to engage in cooperation with you. You personally have made it clear that it is in a determined way that you intend to fight Boko Haram and its methods that deeply violate the principles of humanity.

“We intend to support you because we believe that it is a very good approach that you have chosen. We note that this approach consists of joining forces with neighbouring countries to fight Boko haram, and you have already taken steps in that direction as members of the African Union. We as Europe will support that initiative with $50 million.

“In our exchange today, we made it clear that development is not possible without governance, and without governance you cannot fight.
“I had the opportunity to pay a visit to an IDP camp and Germany will continue to provide humanitarian support especially to the vulnerable women and children,” he said.

On looted funds stashed in Europe, Gauck said: “I am afraid the president of Germany is not involved in this.”