Point News247 reports that Governor Babagana Zulum of Borno State, North East Nigeria, has advised the government to seek external help in the fight against insurgency, including hiring mercenaries, saying there is nothing wrong with such.
Zulum said this at the State House, Abuja, during a media briefing,
He expressed concern about the increasing sophistication and spread of the terrorist group, Islamic State’s West Africa Province (ISWAP), in the state.
Zulum said the federal government must do everything in its power to defeat ISWAP now, or else the menace constituted by the Boko Haram terrorist sect would be nothing compared to what the group would do when they gain stability.
Zulum listed various successes recorded by his administration. He said before the advent of the All Progressive Congress (APC), the insurgency had triggered acute humanitarian and post-displacement crisis, with devastating social and economic consequences on the population, which further deepened fragility and poverty in the North-east region.
Zulum said the outcome of the recovery and peace-building assessment by the World Bank, European Union (EU), and the United Nations (UN) revealed that the total sum of $6.9 billion was lost as a result of the insurgency in the entire North-east states, with Borno incurring over two-thirds of the losses.
Zulum said, “Notwithstanding all the contributions of the federal government, we still have some challenges. One, I said it before, a growing number of ISWAP in some parts of the state is a matter of great concern to everybody. Why? They are in the shores of the Lake Chad, again in southern Borno State. Luckily enough, I was told there was military deployment yesterday (Wednesday) to southern Borno State to fight the insurgents in the Tudun Katarangwa.
“But I think this is the early warning system. We shouldn’t allow ISWAP to grow. ISWAP are more sophisticated, more funded and they’re more educated. And we should do everything possible to defeat ISWAP; otherwise, what Boko Haram did will be a child’s play.
“This is an early warning system. Nigerian Army has to re-strategise and defeat ISWAP. ISWAP will be a threat to the entire nation, because of the proximity of Sub-Saharan Africa. They are coming from Libya and others resettling here.
“I want to say something categorically. One of the major reasons why we have been succeeding in the North-east, in particular in Borno State, is because of one major fundamental thing: there was never a time I requested to see Mr. President and I was denied access.
“And then whether we like it or not, a few days ago, I’ve said something about two local governments still not occupied by human population. I think that there is some misunderstanding. Some say that two local governments are under the control of Boko Haram, no. Two local governments are not occupied by human population. But whether we like it or not, it’s right because if two local governments are not occupied, what does it mean?
“It means the capacity is not there to protect this human population to go to this local government areas. But we’re working with the Nigerian Army to ensure immediate resettlement of people to Malam Fatori, which is the headquarters of Abadam local government. And again, Ogunbaden, headquarters of Mainari local government.
“We are not saying that these two local government are under their control, but these two local governments are not under human occupation. We need support from the federal government to support the relocation of these people to these local government areas. This committee that has been constituted by the federal government will look into these matters, among others.”