The Federal
Government has been advised to consider the appointment of a new leader for
Boko Haram, Sheikh Abu Musab Al-Barnawi as a very serious and dangerous
development in the ongoing war against terrorism and insurgency.
President of
Association of Industrial Security and Safety Operators of Nigeria, , AISSSON),
Dr. Onah Ekhomu said in a statement that the strategic leadership appointment
should be considered a direct threat from ISIS.
Consequently, the Federal
Government should urgently direct the intelligence agencies, the military, law
enforcement and citizens to be on full alert to avert spectacular terrorist
attacks on Nigerian soil.
He said that the making of a leadership change for
Boko Haram signalled a much closer relationship between BH and ISIS than was
previously believed to exist. “If ISIS gets to appoint senior leadership for
BH, then they are probably running the Nigerian terror group as a local
franchise,” he said.
“Strategic decisions such as leadership appointments are
made by the spiritual leader of a terrorist group. In other words, the
appointment of Al-Barnawi might have been made by ISIS leader Sheik Abu Bakr
El-Baghdadi himself”, he added.
Ekhomu noted that under the leadership of
Sheikh Abubakar Shekau, Boko Haram caused over 30,000 deaths in Nigeria.
He
advised the military to remain focused and on high alert. He said “there are
strong indications that Boko Haram is re-strategizing, not surrendering. We
should all be concerned about lone wolf attacks (such as suicide bombers) and
wolf pack attacks which ISIS is very good at.”
He urged the Federal Government
to soft-pedal on the hasty release of so-called repentant Boko Haram fighters,
saying that “we could be recycling captured terrorists back into the battle-field”.
According to the security expert, since the armed conflict is still ongoing,
captured terrorists should be considered “prisoners of war"
Follow Solenzo Blog on
0 Comments