ADVERTISEMENT
Nigeria’s chief of army staff, Ibrahim Attahiru, says recent attacks on military bases and the attendant losses of soldiers and equipment will not stop the military from winning the war against the Boko Haram insurgency.
Mr Attahiru, a lieutenant-general, said this on Thursday in Maiduguri,
Borno State, when he paid yet another visit to the frontline.
It was the fifth time that the army chief was visiting the state since his appointment in February. The latest visit followed this week’s attack on troops at Mainok village, where major military equipment was destroyed or reportedly stolen by the insurgents.
Defence minister, service chiefs storm Borno
today.ng - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from today.ng Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Channels Television
Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State says the security challenges faced under the former security chiefs came as a result of their delving into politics.
According to Governor Wike, “instead of concentrating on the security of the nation, the service chiefs were very much involved in politics.”
Speaking as a guest on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics, Wike urged the new leaders of the armed forces not to toe the path of their predecessors.
“This was the problem we had with the previous chiefs, they were involved in politics rather than face the security of the nation.
“Nobody can deny that fact; the moment you politicize security, then you are bound to have problems,” Wike stated via a zoom call.
Channels Television
Updated January 31, 2021
File: Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike says the new service chiefs must know that the task ahead is enormous.
Wike who was a guest on Channels Television’s
Sunday Politics argued that it was the romance with politics that caused the former Service Chiefs to fail in prosecuting the war against insurgency.
The governor’s statement comes few hours after New Chief of Defence Staff, Major General Lucky Irabor led other service chiefs on an operational visit to the Headquarters, Command and Control Centre of Operation Lafiya Dole in Maiduguri, the Borno State Capital.
This trip by the new service chiefs serves as the first operational visit aimed at better prosecuting the war against the insurgents and other miscreants across the country, a task which Governor Wike says is too enormous to be mixed with politics.
At the meeting, the president charged them to be patriotic, and serve the country well.
His words:
“We’re in a state of emergency. Be patriotic, serve the country well, as your loyalty is to the country.”
The President congratulated the Service Chiefs on heading their various services, adding:
“There’s nothing I can tell you about the service because you are in it. I was also in it, and I will pray for you. I also assure you that whatever I can do as Commander-in-Chief will be done, so that the people will appreciate your efforts.
“You know the stage we were in 2015, you know the stage we are now, and the undertakings we made. We promised to secure the country, revive the economy, and fight corruption. None has been easy, but we have certainly made progress.”
vimarsana © 2020. All Rights Reserved.