assuring that security moves were in top gear to monitor terrorists movements
just as the Director of Army Public Relations, Brigadier General Ibrahim
Attahiru also alerted Nigerians that Boko Haram terrorists have come out with
new tactics to circumvent security measures put in place towards curtailing
their activities in the North East.
The new
methods according to General Attahiru include resorting to attacks on soft
targets and erecting snap road blocks on major highways in the north east.
He however
stressed that the Army has been responding swiftly through effective combat
patrols both on air and land.
General
Attahiru said: “While the onslaught on the violence extremist organisation
continues, the insurgents have devised methods to circumvent the new security
measures by resorting to attacks on soft targets and erecting snap road blocks
on major highways in the north east” he said.
”Equally,
our troops have responded appropriately through effective combat patrols both
on land and air in order to dominate the area of operations,” he stated.
Describing
the United States’ designation of Boko Haram and Ansaru as Foreign Terrorist
Organisations (FTO) as a step in the right direction, he noted that the
Nigerian Army has continued to carry out “full spectrum counter-insurgency
operations, with emphasis on both kinetic and non-kinetic operations to shape
the operational environment in the north east”.
”Currently,
7 Division of the Nigerian Army in conjunction with the Nigerian Air force had
carried out simultaneous offensive operations. Based on these operations,
insurgents were successfully cleared from some camps in SambisaForest,
BitaVillage in Damboa Local Government as well as Gujba in neighbouring
YobeState. Many insurgents were killed and large cache of arms and ammunition
were also recovered,” the Army spokesman said.
In the
same vein, the General Officer Commanding, GOC, 2 Division Garrison, Major
General Ahmed Jubrin expressed the readiness of the Nigerian Army to combat
terrorism and other security challenges in the country.
Addressing
the soldiers, General Jubrin who was represented by the Commander, 4 Brigade,
Benin, Brig.-Gen. Patrick Akem, said at the end of the 2 Brigade “Inter Brigade
Combat Proficiency Competition,” which ended in Benin City, yesterday, said
that the exercise was geared towards combat readiness, as much as confidence
building for men of the Nigerian Army.
According
to him, “all these are geared ensuring that the desire of the Chief of Army
Staff to build capacity in a manner that will position us to tackle the
challenges we are facing currently. We have done this not only to create awareness
but to give confidence to the nation that indeed we are training and we are
able to tackle the challenges that we are facing.
Chief of
Army Staff in Lagos
Speaking
in Lagos while commissioning the remodeled headquarters of the Nigerian Army
Engineers Complex, at Bonny cantonment , Victoria Island, Ihejirika noted that
attempt by some insurgents to
spread
from the North eastern region of the country to other regions have met
brick-wall following their subsequent arrests, adding that the Nigerian Army
would continue to do its best in providing equipment and logistics to enable
troops carry out their duties”.
He said,
“The spread should not cause panic. We monitor their movement and the exposure
on them is beefed up in the North East in particular and in other parts of the
North and the tendency is not for them to fret down wards.”
What we
are trying to do is to build new cells in the new areas particularly for those
of them that are unrepentant.a
We have a
common understanding with the SSS ,the police and other sister services to
continue to monitor them and they are being arrested”.
Commending
the Nigerian Army Corps of Engineers for turning giving its head quarters a
structural face lift, Ihejirika noted that the initiative and courage to
undertake such project was in line with his vision to transform the Nigerian
Army into a force that would meet the demands of the present challenges as well
as remain relevant in national development.
According
to him, “ this giant strides entailed a lot of sacrifice, integrity and on
the part of the commander and his officers and soldiers. It is a proof that the
transformation agenda of the president, commander- in chief of Armed Forces, Dr
Goodluck Jonathan is being imbibed by some commanders in the Nigeria Army.”
He
therefore,urged other commanders to emulate such,even as he encouraged the
Commander, officers and soldiers of the Corps to strive more to improve upon
the standards attained, noting that any organisation that is not growing
is dying. here is still room for improvement particularly in support for the
Nigeria Army operations in the North East where we have made progress the Army
Headquarters in the face of limited resources and other competing needs.
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