Borno State Government has expressed satisfaction with the growing number of insurgents surrendering to the military in the state.
Alhaji Babakura Abba-Jato, State Commissioner for Information, disclosed this at the end of an expanded security meeting held on Saturday in Maiduguri.
Abba-Jato said government was happy with the development and the sustained military onslaught at the shores of Lake Chad and Sambisa Forest.
“The meeting chaired by the Governor is happy with the clearing exercise going on at the shores of the Lake Chad as well as what is going on around the Sambisa general area with some of the insurgents surrendering.
He called on them to increase their efforts so that the whole state will be free to lead their normal lives without any hindrance.
According to the Commissioner, Gov. Zulum most particularly expressed his gratitude for the clearing exercise in the shores of the Lake Chad and the Sambisa general area, noting that although the factional leader of Boko Haram, Abubakar Shekau, was killed, a new group is taking over Shekau’s position.
“We will encourage them to surrender and discard their nefarious activities so that they can be accommodated, rehabilitated and integrated into the society,” Abba-Jato said.
He explained that the return of relative peace to many parts of the state has led to restoration of civil authority.
He said it has also contributed to the ongoing resettlement of displaced persons back to their ancestral land and expansion of farming activities in recovered areas.
Abba-Jato said the meeting agreed on the need to clear thick bushes along the 85 kilometre Maiduguri-Damboa road that remained closed for several years for reopening.
He commended the military and other security agencies including Civilian Joint Task Force, hunters and vigilante groups for their sustain effort in the fight against insurgency in the state.
He assured them of government’s continuous support and collaboration from the public.
The commissioner said that a committee of enquiry has been set up to handle the issue of the clash in Maiduguri between members of a taskforce and some EYN Church members.
He said the outcome of the investigation will be made public when it is while assuring that justice will take its course at the end of the enquiry.
However, the governor made it clear that his administration will not condone any form of indiscipline or breach of law by any individual.
Meanwhile, the Commissioner said the Deputy Governor, Umar Usman Kadafur, under the directives of the governor has visited the victims and sympathized with them.
The governor enjoined members of the public to be very vigilant and report any suspicious persons or activity to the security agencies.
The Nigeria Army announced that over 100 insurgents surrendered with their families and weapons within the past two weeks in Borno.
