Buratai Orders Community Stabilization Campaign to Counter Boko Haram Ideology; vows officers/soldiers in protest action in Maiduguri will get Military Justice.

Chief of Army Staff, Lt. General Yusuf Buratai on Thursday disclosed that he has directed that another sustained campaign focused on community stabilization be conducted to counter the negative narrative and ideology of the Boko Haram Terrorists to break the effect on the misled.
He also said that that scores of officers and soldiers who protested violently at the Maiduguri airport over deployment to new locations in the North east, have been arrested adding that they have been investigated and will face military justice.
Speaking at a media parley in Abuja, the COAS said, “The incident at the Maiduguri airport that happened just about two weeks ago is an issue which ordinarily is unimaginable; that disciplined troops, soldiers will behave in that way.
“But we have our procedures and this issue has been thoroughly investigated and those that have been found to be involved will face military justice. This sort of affairs will never be tolerated no matter the person or persons.
“There was this directive I gave that there should be a general reorganization, redeployment of troops to various locations for us to consolidate on the operational efforts in the North East to prevent the unnecessary attacks on our own troops and civilians across this nation.

“It is part of the overall plans to secure the North East and they were directed to execute that plan and if for whatever reason, they resisted it, then it’s unfortunate and we are going to deal with them accordingly.

“They were not the only ones that were directed to move from one location to the other, there are several locations that troops have been moved, from Maiduguri from Bama, Damaturu and so on. Why should their own be different?

“We won’t tolerate indiscipline, and be rest assured we are working very hard to see to the welfare of every soldier in the theatre and even outside. Our welfare and moral programmes have been quite comprehensive and we will continue to do that.
Speaking further, the Army Chief said the media interaction is aimed at enlightening the general public on the Nigerian Army’s non-kinetic efforts at combating insurgency.

“One of such effort is promoting community stabilization as a means of combating the negative ideology of the Boko Haram Terrorists”.

He continued, “It is common knowledge that the Nigerian Army along with other security agencies is currently involved in the fight against insurgency and other forms of criminality across the nation. This has resulted in the conduct of several military operations by the Nigerian Army, notably which is Operation Lafiya Dole in the North East.

“These operations conducted by the Nigerian Army have yielded the desired results, particularly in the North East where Boko Haram Terrorists have been substantially degraded, thereby rendering their ability to conduct coordinated attacks impossible.

“This has further created the enabling environment for the conduct of Operation Last Hold which is aimed at a dignified return of refugees and internally displaced persons back to their ancestral homes.

Declaring that the Nigerian Army is not unaware of the many security challenges that have bedeviled this country in the last decade or so, Buratai said, “However I am pleased to state that giant strides have been made in this regard. Our security architecture as a country is one with a very positive outlook.

“We are now consolidating on the gains achieved in the fight against insurgency in the North East as part of the stabilization phase of our operations where all efforts are geared towards ensuring that displaced persons are fully returned to their ancestral homes which are now relatively safe.

“In view of the aforementioned, I have directed that another sustained campaign focused on community stabilization be conducted to counter the negative narrative and ideology of the Boko Haram Terrorists.

“This is necessitated by the power which is inherent in a community when members of the community team up to achieve a desired objective. We have discovered the power that is embedded in large communities when they collectively team up to achieve a desired goal or objective.

“Community Stabilization as you are all aware is a measure of the sustained ability of a community to utilize available resources to respond to, withstand and recover from adverse situations. It is also a means where communities stand up as a collective entity to resist whatever is deemed alien to their beliefs, culture, tradition and way of life.

“The insurgents have used fear and extremely negative religious fundamentalism as a justification for the deployment of women and children as suicide bombers, setting ablaze Churches and Mosques while engaging in indiscriminate killings of innocent people.

“Community Stabilization lies in the ability of every community to say, “No more will we allow this to happen to us again”, “No more will we support and protect those who seek to destroy us and our future”, “No more will we succumb to the cheap threats of these insurgents”.

“The resistance by the community will create an internal system that will complement the efforts of the Nigerian Army and ensure that these insurgents are ideologically defeated completely.

Furthermore, the COAS said, “We have witnessed the increased determination of the people of the North east to resist and unite against the terrorists, following their relocation back to their ancestral homes.

“It is obvious that the people of the North east are developing a collective resilience which only needs to be encouraged and supported. This is a positive response against the initial imposition of a strange ideology by the terrorists. The Nigerian Army intends to build on this.

He added that as a key facilitator of Civil-Military cooperation especially at this stabilization phase of our war against terrorism, the Nigerian Army will collaborate with government Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), security agencies, humanitarian actors, civil society organizations and other stakeholders in this regard.

“Furthermore, the Nigerian Army will be involved in the facilitation of food security, economic development, health care, provision of farm inputs and farm implements, protection and rehabilitation of critical and social infrastructure, enhancing coping capabilities to internal and external shock, using community centered approach that will strengthen social cohesion, access to livelihood and economic recovery process.

“All these are part of the absorptive, adaptive, trans-formative capacities and other well-being outcomes to enhance community resilience as a measure of countering the negative ideology of the insurgents.

“The Department of Civil Military Affairs, Directorate of Army Public Relations, the Nigerian Army Engineers, the Nigerian Army Intelligence Corps, Nigerian Army Education Corps, Nigerian Army Medical Corps and the Nigerian Army Chaplaincy and Islamic Affairs are therefore to immediately articulate a Campaign Plan to this effect.

“This Campaign Plan for countering the negative narrative and ideology of the insurgents using community resilience is part of the Nigerian Army’s non-kinetic approach to the fight against insurgency in the North East.
“Therefore I want to solicit the support of the media, all other stakeholders and well meaning Nigerians at this crucial stage of our fight against insurgency.

“I also want to use this medium to also call on our religious and traditional institutions to play a key part in this campaign. The Nigerian Army will thus create security awareness to enlighten and educate communities through their leaders.

“To this end, I encourage religious, traditional and community leaders to propagate the power of communal living, social coherence and resilience as a means of defeating the insurgents in their messages, sermons and every available avenue until we achieve the desired objective.”

END