MAIDUGURI—A female suicide bomber, who was arrested by the
vigilante group also known as civilian JTF, revealed, yesterday,
that 50 other female suicide bombers have been let loose in
Maiduguri, the Borno State capital with a mandate to kill
100,000 persons before the end of December 2014.
The arrested female bomber disclosed this on a day the Chief of
Army Staff, Lt. General Kenneth Minimah vowed that Boko
Haram will be defeated. This came as former Head of State,
General Yakubu Gowon charged the army chief and his
commanders to urgently correct the negative perception about
Nigerian soldiers abandoning their weapons and running away in
the midst of the fight against Boko Haram terrorists.
The female suicide bomber was said to have been arrested by
civilian JTF at the entrance gate of the University of Maiduguri,
while another was apprehended at the busy Post Office area of
the metropolis, yesterday.
The arrest came barely a day after two female suicide bombers
blew themselves up in Maiduguri Market on Monday, killing 22
civilians and injuring 48 others.
Upon their arrest, one of the suicide bombers was said to have
confessed before being handed over to security operatives that
50 female members of the sect have been initiated and are ready
to wreak havoc in Maiduguri and environs before the end of
2014 .
Following this disclosure, sources said, tension is now very high
in the Borno capital as students of the University of Maiduguri
had to undergo serious check by security operatives before being
allowed into the campus.
It was gathered that already, students have been banned from
entering the campus with their vehicles as only lecturers enjoyed
this privilege after rigorous checks and identification.
The civilian JTF have also been put on red alert. It would be
recalled that, already four female suicide bombers have caused
the deaths of over 100 people in two incidents in Maiduguri
recently.
Troops repel attacks in Konduga
Meanwhile, attempts to launch fresh attacks in Konduga and
Maiduguri have been repelled by troops of the 7 Division in
Konduga Local Government area of the state.
Konduga is south east and about 40 kilometres drive from
Maiduguri, the state capital. Recently troops in the area with
support from civilian JTF repelled insurgents, killing more than
200.
Sources said the insurgents numbering more than 300 armed
with sophisticated weapons using Hilux vehicles and motorcycles
had an encounter with troops while attempting to overrun
Konduga and Maiduguri towns. The insurgents were, however,
overwhelmed as the troops killed unspecified number of them
before they abandoned some of their vehicles, arms and
ammunition.
Another source said: “The attacks on insurgents in Konduga by
the military on Monday at about 9 p.m left more than 200
terrorists dead”.
A top military source confirmed the killing of hundreds of
insurgents in the failed attack on Konduga town.
He said: “Our troops repelled attack by Boko Haram sect on
Konduga Council Area where the insurgents suffered casualties
with none of our troops killed or injured”.
Save image of Army— Gowon
In a related development, former Head of State, General Yakubu
Gowon has charged the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. General Kenneth
Minimah and his commanders to urgently correct the negative
perception about Nigerian soldiers abandoning their weapons
and running away in the midst of the fight against terrorists.
Gowon gave the charge just as the Chief of Army Staff, declared
that the war against terrorism will be won. “We would be
undertaking a review of ongoing operations in the North-East
with a view to bringing a speedy end to the reign of terror
unleashed on innocent Nigerians by these elements”, the Army
Chief said.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of the 2014 Chief of Army
Staff Conference in Uyo, Gowon, who was represented by former
Lagos State Administrator, General Buba Marwa, said: “Ordinary
Nigerians in high and low places have expressed reservations
that they are not happy that their military who ought to defend
our territorial integrity and protect people from internal and
external threat appear to be losing ground to Boko Haram
insurgents.
“But from the pictures of Boko Haram seen, apart from being
mounted on Toyota vehicles, they look rag-tag — certainly no
threat to well-trained and better soldiers of the Nigerian Army.
The COAS and commanders need to urgently correct this
negative perception about our soldiers who have in the past, a
record of professionalism and competence.”
Recalling how he tackled security challenges of the civil war,
Gowon said: “At a critical period during the civil war, I had only
500, 000 rounds of ammunition as total reserve for the armed
forces. I could not continue with operations with such quantity of
ammo, and no money.
“I only relied on some patriotic and committed businessmen in
Nigeria who were able to get 15million rounds of ammunition
within a very short time on their own account — they were paid
later by government.”
While noting that the Federal Government can buy military
equipment directly from friendly and obliging governments as he
did during the civil war, Gowon said: “The government recently
acquired a loan of $1billion for fighting the insurgency. Make
demands for equipment from it”.
Continuing, he said: “I have not lost confidence in our armed
forces. I want you to retrieve your honour by reversing some of
these lapses into successes, losses into victories; negative
opinions into positive opinions. I charge you to go all out to
flush those insurgents out of our territories, all the way back to
where they came from. That is the task the armed forces must
accomplish without delay”.
The biggest threat
On his part, Lt. General Minimah noted that the upsurge of
terrorism and violent extremism in the North East of the country
has remained the most significant threat facing our dear country
today.
“The Nigerian Army is aware of the enormity of this national
challenge having fought a 30-month civil war to unite Nigeria
and taken part in operations to protect the territorial integrity of
other countries which faced similar threats.
“In the last 10 months since my assumption of command, our
attention has been focused primarily on tackling the insurgency
in the North East and other security challenges in the North
Central and North West. Our key priorities have been to maintain
all round professional readiness, improve the standard of
training, modernize our equipment, pay attention to troops’
welfare and enhance force posture.
“During the year, we also developed and implemented new
strategies not only to contain current threats but also to better
prepare us to combat future security challenges,” Minimah said.
Safety of Nigerians, my priority — Jonathan
Also speaking, President Goodluck Jonathan, represented by the
Minister of Defence, General Aliyu Gusau noted that one of the
cardinal pillars of the Transformation Agenda is the safety,
security and well-being of all Nigerians and other residents
irrespective of their tribes or religious affiliations.
“It is a duty that I have devoted my entire being to and resolve
towards its attainment. It is in line with my government’s resolve
that we are ever committed to provide a safe and enabling
environment for all Nigerians to carry out their businesses and
contribute to the building of a strong, united, prosperous and
stable nation.
“Under my leadership, the Federal Government will continue to
provide ready assistance to the armed forces to meet operational
needs”.
The President said resources have been made available to ensure
recruitment and training of capable army personnel.
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