Plans have been concluded by the Nigerian military to reintegrate Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) from Northern Borno back to their communities, Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Gen. Tukur Buratai said on Thursday.
He said the IDPs, who fled their residences following attacks from terroristsโ sect, Boko Haram, would be returned home and protected by the military for four to five months.
Buratai disclosed this during a telephony conference organised by the United States Mission, Nigeria to wrap up the African Land Forces Summit, 2018.
Fielding questions from journalists in various African countries, Buratai said: โFirst look at where we are coming from, where we are and where we are going to. Boko Haram as a formidable force used to move around freely across the country. Before 2015, they had reached Abuja, Lokoja, Sokoto, Kano, Kaduna, Jos, Bauchi and virtually across many part of the country especially the northern and central parts.
โBut since 2015, there was no major attack outside the northeast. In 2017, there was no major attack in the northeast. In this context, you will agree with me that Boko Haram has been defeated. Even within the northeast where we have suicide bombings and few isolated cases, they use propaganda as one of thier tactics.
โIf you are in Maiduguri or any part of the Northeast, you will know Boko Haram has been defeated.
Boko Haram is restricted between very few isolated areas. They have been moving from one point to another and we have continued to pursue them. We were not in Sambisa forest about a year or two ago but today we are firmly rooted in the Sambisa forest.
โAlong the border areas we have some attacks where they cross over from Cameroon to attack. With the combined efforts of all our forces, we are working together to get them contained.
โAs far as I am concerned, the narrative is that Boko Haram has been defeated. We have gone further than that. Many of the residents have started moving to their communities. The latest one is in Bama Local Government of Borno. The movement is still ongoing.
โVery soon people will return to all those areas where they were displaced and start their lives again. We have to apply all the necessary means available to provide essential amentities, like schools, hospital for them to be able to move around.
โThe insurgents have not been able to hold any ground or move freely like before. Do not be carried away by the propaganda of the insurgents. People hardly pay attention to the efforts security forces are making.
โThe whole of Nigerian Army is moving to Northern Borno State to bring back those who left and we would stay with them in the next four five months.โ
Continuing, Buratai said there was need for Africa countries to work together to combat terrorism, adding that challenges of porous border, trans-border intrusion and other immigration concerns needed to be addressed.
He said: โSo we also take advantage of that to see that the right troops are mobilized to ensure that we degrade Boko Haram terrorists. Collaboration with our neighboring countries is very important and crucial to complete eradication of the Boko Haram terrorist.
โYou see that the effort of the Multinational Joint Task Force (MJTF) is most fundamental in the effect that there is need for us to continue to work together and this is being done right now with the bilateral as well as multilateral arrangement in place.
โAs it is, our troops are working alongside each othe. Therefore, there is need for total cooperation. We need to put our forces on ground and for necessary gadgets to be put in place. We are working to ensure right direction and right political support is gotten in terms of road infrastructure, health facilities, schools.โ
Explaining the use of armed drones by the military in the northeast, Buratai assured that precautions were taken, adding that the drones were mainly deployed inside the Sambisa Forest.
โThe drones are used as force multipliers and they also provide us with intelligence on the movement of arms. We also them to monitor the movement of troops and also mark the insurgents. It helps us improve response time of our troops in any area.
โSome of our neighboring countries using these facilities will help us facilitate quick reactions before terrorists attack.โ
Acting Commander, US Army Africa, Gen. Eugene LeBoeuf said the focus of the summit was to bring the armies of the region together in order to tackle security challenges.
โIt was to ensure protection, safer logistics cooperation among the African continent. To support African partners in security operations through training techniques. Insecurity is one of the major forces we are confronted with.โ
