Boko Haram Killings: Why Our Hands Are Tied --Presidency

The Presidency on Tuesday gave excuses why the security forces have found it difficult to completely flush out members of the Boko Haram sect, who have massacred innocent people and massively destroyed property in the North Eastern part of the country, from their hideouts.

The president confessed that the situation is a complex one. Below is the government stand:

“We note the recent attacks by Boko Haram insurgents in Borno State and some comments about them in the media by some leading Nigerians. For the avoidance of doubt and with ample evidence on the ground, we state that the Nigerian Armed Forces and security agencies are on top of the situation. 

“The orchestration of mayhem by the insurgents is the result of their dislodgment from their strongholds and hideouts in the mountainous forest areas of Borno State. 

“In recent times, these areas have been heavily bombed aerially by the Nigerian Air Force and combed systematically by ground troops...

“If the insurgents have not been completely routed, it is due to the fact that our Armed Forces are severely constrained because of the fact that civilian settlements are also co-located in this vicinity making selective engagement tenuous and difficult if heavy civilian casualty is to be avoided.

“The public will note that following serious dislocation of the insurgents from their hideouts, the new trend is for them, after sporadic attacks, which are usually launched at night, to quickly cross over to neigbouring countries for safety.

“The Nigerian military is prevented from pursuing them into these foreign territories by law and international conventions and this obviously gives continuous respite to the insurgents.

“We must note that as far back as over 12 months ago, the fighting machinery of the insurgents had suffered major decapitation. They have, therefore, resorted almost exclusively, to attacking soft targets such as schools, women and children and sleeping communities in the early hours of the morning.

“Most of the villages attacked are those like Kauri, Izge and Konduga, which are generally situated along the foot of the Gwoza Mountains, which stretches from Nigeria to the Cameroon.

“The obvious location of these villages close to the mountains affords the insurgents opportunity and facility to launch strikes at night and sneak back across the border into neighbouring countries. But the Nigerian military and security agencies have taken up this challenge and, like every facet of this struggle, will put an end to these incursions in the shortest possible time.

These are the words of Senior Special Assistant (SSA) to the President on Public Affairs, Dr. Doyin Okupe, who was reacting to the position of Borno State Governor, Alhaji Kashim Shettima, that it was impossible for the military to defeat the terrorists.

Okupe is however insisting that it is not true that the insurgents are better armed than Nigerian armed forces.