In a move to
resolve its disagreement with the United Nations (UN), the Nigerian military
has declared support for the global body’s operations in the insurgency-
ravaged
north-east region.
There has
been a squabble between the military and the UN following a search at the
agency’s base in Maiduguri, Borno State by troops.But in a reconciliatory move
yesterday, the military re-assured the UN agencies operating in the north-east
of “support and security” in rendering humanitarian services to 6.9 million
displaced persons.
The
assurance was contained in a statement by the Theatre Commander, Operation
Lafiya Dole, Maj-Gen Ibrahim Attahiru, which was made available to journalists
in Maiduguri yesterday.
Gen.
Attahiru said the “cordon and search” operations on UN humanitarian workers’
base was never intended to undermine the integrity of the UN that has been
working tirelessly to alleviate the suffering of displaced persons.
The
statement reads in part: “The Nigerian military’s attention has been drawn to
some negative rumour against the UN agencies’ operations in the North-East,
following our cordon and search operation in Pompomari bypass, Maiduguri.
“One of the
mandates of the Nigerian military in the north-east theatre of operation is to
provide security and support to the UN and other humanitarian agencies to
discharge their duties.
“Their roles
have been complementing the efforts of the Federal Government in restoring
normalcy in the affected sub-region of the country.“Mechanisms have been put in
place to ensure that the incident that led to the peddling of misleading
information in the social media does not occur again.”
This timely
explanation of what happened at the UN building is helpful for the military
that had been previously accused of abuses by Amnesty International in the
prosecution of the war against terror in the northeast.
Gen.
Attahiru assured the UN agencies in the region of their safety at all times.
“We will continue to provide all necessary support and an enabling environment
for the discharge of their humanitarian activities.”
The UN
Deputy Humanitarian Coordinator, Peter Lundberg said that the relationship of
“collaboration and trust” with the Nigerian government was intact to support
millions of vulnerable people in the north-east with life-saving humanitarian
aid.
Lundberg
announced this at the weekend at a joint press conference with Governor Kashim
Shettima of Borno State over the military’s “cordon and search” of UN
Humanitarian workers’ base.
He described
the search as a tumultuous event that generated significant media coverage
before it was resolved at a security council meeting.His words: “At this stage
of resolutions, we are focused on the work ahead to ensure that millions of
vulnerable people in the north-east are supported with life-saving humanitarian
aid.
“Responding
to the humanitarian needs of millions of people in the North-East remains our
priority and our focus, each and every day.“The humanitarian crises in
Nigeria’s North-East and the Lake Chad region, is one of the most severe in the
world today, with 8.5 million people in need of assistance in 2017 in the worst
affected states of Borno, Adamawa, and Yobe and 6.9 million targeted for
humanitarian assistance.”
According to
him, the food security situation in the north-east is one of the major issues,
as hundreds and thousands of people do not have enough to eat because of the
lean season which is at its peak and compounded by insecurity.This means people
cannot farm like they used to,” he said .
Governor
Shettima, who described the search as regrettable, said following the incident,
he summoned a security council meeting with all the security chiefs in
attendance.His words: “We met alongside with the UN Deputy Humanitarian
Coordinator and reaffirmed and resolved to work in synergy and look forward for
even stronger collaboration with the United Nations.”
Meanwhile,
suspected Boko Haram insurgents attacked Amarwa village in Konduga Local
Government, Borno State, killing four villagers. About 12 other villagers were
seriously wounded in the Saturday night attack.Amarwa is a farming and herding community
located 15 kilometres east of Maiduguri, the state capital.
The
insurgents, according to Modu Bukar, a member of Civilian JTF, burst into the
village through the northern flank of Sambisa Forest.He said the insurgents
took advantage of the 10:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. curfew to trap and attack the
villagers in the houses and huts, before setting the village ablaze.
“The
villagers were about to go to sleep when they heard chanting of ‘God is the
great’ in Arabic by some insurgents who were armed with petrol bombs and AK-47
rifles and started firing at fleeing residents.
Ahmed Shehu
of the Civil Liberty Organisation (CLO) also confirmed the incident to The
Guardian in a text message.“Boko Haram burnt another village unit of Wanori,
Amarwa village yesterday at about 10:00 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. as reported by the
village head,” he said.
Shehu added:
“Four people have been confirmed killed in the attack, while over a dozen
others were injured and taken to hospital for treatment on Sunday morning.”The
military and the police were yet to confirm the incident as the telephone lines
of the spokespersons of both institutions were switched off at press time.
Guardian
0 Comments