Chief of Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh yesterday told Gen Ibrahim Sabo (rtd)-led presidential fact-finding committee on the abducted Chibok schoolgirls, that war against insurgency caused by an Islamic sect, Boko Haram, is not for the military alone.
Spokesman of the committee, Kingsley Osadolor in a statement yesterday quoted Badeh as saying that the security forces would be relieved if the committee could get to the root of the abduction.
Badeh was said to have stated this during a meeting of service chiefs with the committee members.
“It will give us respite if you are able to get to the root of all that has happened. Everybody thinks this war is for the military alone; no. It is a war for all of us. Soldiers don’t fight wars on their own. It’s a nation that goes to war,” Badeh stated.
The defence chief, however, assured the committee that with the current efforts and the supports being received, security agencies would win the terror war and bring back the abducted girls.
Badeh also charged the committee to help reveal to the world an accurate account of the mass kidnap that has attracted global outrage and precipitated the offer of help from some major powers.
He also dispelled insinuations over the abduction and terror in general concerning the fire power of the terrorists, the morale of Nigerian troops, as well as operational deployment of troops.
Part of the statement read: “The military top brass explained their rules of engagement, and related issues of appropriate firepower in situations which terrorism presents within Nigerian territory where there is civilian population.
“At another meeting with the Department of State Services, DSS, its Director General, Mr Ekoenyong Ita, gave a detailed brief on the Department’s anti-terrorism efforts, which he said had led to several arrests and the bust of terror threats and plots. He also spoke on the Chibok abduction.
“The Director General dispelled the notion of inadequate intelligence gathering as a factor hindering the fight against terror.”
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