Boko Haram: Gov Zulum Fingers Politicians, Soldiers As Informants

• Vows to deal ruthlessly with saboteurs

BY OUR CORRESPONDENT – Borno State Governor, Professor Babagana Zulum says the war against terrorism is dragging for so long because some politicians and military officers are saboteurs within the system.

Without mincing words, Governor Zulum, who has repeatedly voiced concerns about the tactical regrouping of the insurgents, said, “We have informants and collaborators within the Nigerian Armed Forces, within the politicians, and within the communities”.

He pointedly accused these highly placed individuals and community members of sabotaging the war by acting as informants and collaborators for the deadly Boko Haram terrorists.

According to the governor, it has therefore become urgent that those frustrating and undermining his administration’s efforts at tackling insurgency and other criminal activities in the state be dealt with in a ruthless manner.

Governor Zulum, who spoke in an interview on News Central’s Breakfast Xtra, also said the Borno State Government is ready to further strengthen its intelligence network to overcome the terrorists and their collaborators

He said; “What we shall do is to strengthen our intelligence and to deal with them ruthlessly. Let’s remove contractocracy. In six months, we can put an end to this madness. We need not politicise insecurity.

“Insurgency will never end with kinetic measures alone, we must ensure that the non-kinetic measures are also put in place. What I mean by non-kinetic measures are socio-political and economic dimensions of the crisis.

“Let me tell you one very important thing, insurgency will never be ended by corrective measures alone. Among the 300,000 or more that have repented, I cannot rule out the possibility of a few of them going back to the bush.”

The governor, while lamenting ing the Military’s lack of sophisticated equipment, noted that the insurgents seem to be enjoying superior technological advantage in the ongoing war.

“The army doesn’t have the necessary equipment on ground to fight the insurgency,” he said but praised the Nigerian military’s contributions in supporting peace-building efforts in the country and beyond.

“I want to commend the Nigerian armed forces for the support that they have been rendering to our non-kinetic measures,” Zulum said, even as he urged President Bola Tinubu to pay attention to ground-level intelligence and professional advice from the military.

For him; “The Forest Guards should be established and provided for immediately. The President of Nigeria needs to listen to those who can differentiate their left from their right.

“We should not politicise insecurity. The President needs to listen to the people who can tell him the right thing. The President should listen to the Army who are capable of offering professional advices”.