₦airaland Forum

The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed said the worst is over with regard to the daunting security challenges in the country.

The minister gave the assurance on Monday in Abuja at a media briefing he jointly addressed with some of his colleagues.

Others at the briefing include Ministers of Defence Maj.-Gen. Bashir Magashi (rtd), Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, and Police Affairs, Alhaji Mohammed Dingyadi, as well as the Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Lucky Irabor.

Speaking, Lai Mohammed said terrorists, bandits, and their cohorts will never hold sway anywhere in the country.

He said the security challenges the country had faced were daunting and ranged from terrorism to banditry, kidnapping, separatist violence, crude oil theft, armed robbery and sundry crimes.

He added that the challenges were undoubtedly the greatest to the peace and security of the country since the 1967 to 1970 civil war.

“It is the kind of challenge that would have overwhelmed many nations, but thanks to the purposeful leadership of President Muhammadu Buhari.

“Today, we are here to tell you that while we may not be there yet, our military and other security agencies have succeeded – and are succeeding – in substantially restoring security across the nation.

“We can say, I want to repeat, that the worst is over and peace and security are gradually returning to the land.

“Please don’t misunderstand or misrepresent this assertion because we may still witness isolated cases of security challenges here and there, but it will not be on the scale that we have witnessed in the past,’’ he assured.

The minister said the successes recorded were sequel to the directive of President Muhammadu Buhari to the military to crush those terrorizing the citizens and there should be no hiding place for them.

He thanked the President for his purposeful leadership as well as the military for their ability to rise to the occasion.

Mohammed also commended the media for their watchdog role and called on them to endeavor to give a big part to the successes being recorded by the security agencies.

Speaking in the same vein, Aregbesola said the security challenges the country faced mostly preceded President Buhari’s administration.

He equally commended the security agencies for rising to the challenges and for largely degrading the groups and persons constituting the threats.

“What we face now mostly are flashes of cowardly attacks from the rumps of groups that have been routed in one location, moving to another to give a false impression that they are still strong.

“Our ultimate goal is to eliminate them altogether and restore total and lasting peace over every inch of Nigerian soil.

“We have been doing this and will continue to do so through the operations of the four agencies under the Ministry,’’ he said.

The Minister of Defence who gave accounts of the military operations across the country said they were achieving greater results through the synchronized ground and air bombardments of the terrorists.

“We have been forcing many of them, including Commanders to surrender in droves, with members of their families.

“Areas where terrorists hitherto had some freedom of action are being cleared, socio-economic life is gradually returning to most parts of the North East.

“Erstwhile Internally Displaced Persons are now returning to their ancestral homes to start life all over, in dignity, under a safer and more secure environment,’’ Magashi said.

Specifically, the minister said in the past four weeks, more than 3,407 Boko Haram Terrorists including members of their families have surrendered.

Additionally, he said 66 terrorists were neutralized including one of the key ISWAP Commanders, Modu Chaka Bem Bem and 20 of his fighters, while 55 were arrested and 52 civilians rescued.

He said troops recovered large quantities of ammunition and illicit drugs while the surrendered and arrested terrorists have been subjected to profiling and the relevant legal processes.

Magashi said for the first time, no single incidence of piracy was recorded in the country’s waters in one full year.

He said in the past four weeks, several illegal oil refining sites, consisting of 493 dugout pits, 512 storage tanks, 413 cooking ovens, and 59 wooden boats were destroyed.

Additionally, he said several weapons, vehicles, vessels, and equipment were recovered.

The minister said about 25,800 barrels of crude oil, 3,200 liters of Premium Motor Spirit, and 2,000 liters of Dual Purpose Kerosene were recovered during various operations while 21 pipeline vandals were arrested.

Massiveglory:
When you see police paying ransom you understand the mess in the nation.
If after seeing this mess, you are still pushing for apc or tinubu for president, then you know you are a mess and you need to visit yaba.
I come in peace.

The Obi-Datti Media Office has responded to the alleged violation of the Electoral Act levied by a support group of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu dismissing it as desolate and baseless.

The support group of Tinubu-Shettima has allegedly called on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to disqualify the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Mr Peter Obi and his running mate, Ahmed Baba Datti, from the 2023 presidential election for allegedly violating a section of Electoral Act on election funding.

Obi-Datti while laughing off the allegations said the ruling party candidate has suddenly become jittery against a so-called structureless party that is only known for its social media presence.

“All of a sudden, the structure-less and social media candidates are now the headache of the ruling party that they now had to fabricate and imagine things they want the electoral Commission to act on.

“Obi’s successful trip abroad which is ostensibly to sensitize and carry along Nigerians aboard on his upcoming agenda of rebuilding the country is open and transparent and not fundraising.

” But we know why it is discomforting for some people because they cannot meet Nigerians in diaspora knowing that they contributed to their leaving the country in the first place.

“We have always said it umpteenth times that their own understanding of structure is the abundance of looted funds in their kitty that they plan to deploy on hungry Nigerian voters during the election to sway their votes.

“They know nobody has the kind of stolen funds they have and are always uncomfortable at anything suggesting to them that their opponents could match them. Obi did not go to beg for money but to sell himself and his mission to Nigerians outside the shores who are critical stakeholders in the Nigeria project.

“Since June 2022 when they deployed a lump of their loots to get the ticket of their party, the nation’s currency crashed and still battling for breath. And since then they have been mopping up foreign currencies ahead of the election to buy voters.

According to the Media office, Obi and his Running mate are knowledgeable enough to know the law and operate within it and who became what they are financially, politically and socially doing legitimate businesses.

“They have no bullion van history of questionable wealth and are ready and willing to be scrutinized.

“Just as Obi and Datti’s backgrounds and antecedents are verifiable so also is their source of income before and now unambiguous and auditable.

“Obi and Datti, reached where they are today in this 2023 journey giving no ‘shishi’ to anybody because they are investing in the suffering Nigerians impoverished by the greedy leaders of the past who diverted public funds to their private and family pockets.

“We understand their predicament, the dearth of contents from their principal, the lack of what to market, using the ample opportunity provided by the campaigns and the resort to searching blindly for reasons to disqualify the people’s only hope for a new and better Nigeria.

“Suddenly, they are beginning to realize that the social media giant, the structure-less and inconsequential candidates, are in the heart of the people who are convinced by their pragmatic messages. In frustration and envy, they are now desperately looking for all crooked ways to stop them.

“Finally, we like to advise all those in this school of thought that the old order that kept us down as a nation will still work, to read the writing on the wall and know that their time is up and that Nigerians are ready and determined to take back their county now.”