President Goodluck Jonathan yesterday declared a state of emergency in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states. However, the governors of the affected states are to continue in their constitutional roles.
The Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Admiral Ola Sa’ad Ibrahim, had been ordered to deploy more troops to the affected states for more effective internal security operations. News of the imposition of the state of emergency was announced by the president in a nationwide broadcast at 7 pm.
The soldiers had been given full orders to take necessary action, within the ambit of their rules of engagement, to end the impunity of insurgents and terrorists.
“This will include
the authority to arrest and detain suspects, the taking of possession and control of any building or structure used for terrorist purposes, the lock-down of any area of terrorist operation, the conduct of searches, and the apprehension of persons in illegal possession of weapons.”
President Jonathan described the present security situation in the country as not just militancy or criminality, but a rebellion and insurgency by terrorist groups which he said posed a very serious threat to national unity and territorial integrity.
He revealed that according to security reports, some northern parts of Borno State had already been taken over by groups whose allegiance was to different flags and ideologies.
While assuring that persuasion and dialogue would continue, President Jonathan reiterated that government had a sacred duty to ensure the security and well-being of all Nigerian people and protect the sovereign integrity of the country. He said: “We shall, on no account, shy away from doing whatever becomes necessary to provide the fullest possible security for the citizens of this country in any part of the country they choose to reside.”
He regretted that there appears a systematic effort by terrorists and insurgents to destabilize the country, vowing that they will not be tolerated.
Military sources told Daily Sun that massive deployment of troops to Borno and Yobe states began on Monday. More than 100 armoured tanks were deployed to both state, stressing “this is the size of a whole Division.”
Sources said another key North western state, and another from the South-South may fall under similar emergency hammer should political crises therein escalate
The president had ignored criticisms from opposition leaders when he went ahead yesterday to impose the emergency rule. Governors Kashim Shettima and Ibrahim Geidam of Borno and Yobe states met with the president in Abuja yesterday where they were briefed, a source had hinted Daily Sun of the move.
While Borno and Yobe states were ruled by the All Nigerian Peoples Party (ANPP), the President’s Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) holds sway in Adamawa State.
Bothered by the spate of killings, the president had to cut short his trip to South Africa for the World Economic Forum on Africa and aborted his state visit to Namibia last Thursday even as the Kabiru Taminu Turaki-led Presidential Committee on Dialogue and Resolution of Security Challenges in the North assured that dialogue with the terror group, Boko Haram, will not be derailed.
Daily Sun also gathered that the decision to go ahead with the declaration of a state of emergency was conveyed to Governors Shettima and Geidam yesterday afternoon, when the duo was at the State House, Abuja, at the instance of the president. The president was also said to have informed the two governors on the necessity for the declaration of a state of emergency.
“Well, I don’t know if the Adamawa governor has been briefed before today. But I can confirm to you that Mr. President has invited the governors of Yobe and Borno, and he met with them today (Tuesday) at the Villa, where he told them of his plan to declare a state of emergency in their states and Adawama.
“The president also reminded the two governors that the democratic structures would remain in place, while the emergency rule lasts,” the source said.
Geidam, in a brief exchange with State House correspondents on what his mission was at the State House said: “We discussed the current security situation in our state and that’s all,” before he rushed off. Shettima said they were both in the State House to discuss the current situations in their states.
“Well, we are basically here to cross-pollinate our ideas with Mr. President on how to move the nation forward. That’s in a nutshell what brought us here to cross-fertilise our ideas with Mr. President.”
On the current security situation in his state, he said: “It’s stable, but I have repeatedly said it is a temporary eclipse in Borno, we shall start shinning again very soon, don’t worry. We shall get over it.”
Meanwhile, Chairman of the Presidential Committee and Minister for Special Duties, Alhaji Turaki, yesterday assured that despite the current spate of violence linked to Boko Haram, the panel’s work would not be derailed. He said the panel would conclude its work within the three-month deadline.
Speaking to State House correspondents at the end of the meeting with President Jonathan, at the committee’s instance, Turaki said the panel had not even considered if the violence would affect its work or not, noting that “what I can say is that the past events have not in any way derailed our programme. It has not derailed our resoluteness, resolution and desire and intention to make sure we get to the root of this problem has not been affected by recent happenings.”
According to him, the video of Boko Haram leader, Abubakar Shekau, released on Monday showing some women and children hostages held by the Islamist sect in retaliation for their families being held by security agencies, doesn’t mean they were averse to settlement via dialogue.
According to Turaki, “I have watched the video clip and from my own understanding, I think what Imam Abubakar Shekau is saying is not different from what the committee is doing. There is no indication to say that they are not amenable to settlement or dialogue. Now, Jama’a people are people who believe that they will live by the teachings of the prophet as enshrined in the provisions of the Qur’an. Now, the Qur’an specifically says that sulh (dialogue, negotiation or settlement), has a lot of values, and in fact, Muslims are encouraged to enter into dialogue. The Prophet Muhammad, who practicalised the provisions of the Qur’an and the teachings of Islam, has also entered into agreement or treaty of Hudaibiyyah, where even the terms that were proposed and agreed upon at that time were clearly against the interest of Muslims, but the prophet accepted and at the end of the day, it paved way for everlasting peace even till today within the Arabian Peninsula.
“And when we sit down to negotiate it does not mean that everybody will get or must get what he wants. There would be give and take at the end of day. The most fundamental thing is, from my own understanding, that the Jama’a people are not averse to dialogue and settlement of the dispute, sitting down to discuss”.
On the thrust of the meeting with President Jonathan, he said, “In the earlier interactions we have had with the press men we made it clear that part of our modus operandi is to engage critical stakeholders through interactive sessions so that we will be able to have information and input from their own perspectives.
“You may be aware that we have had interactions with the security agencies, prison authorities, Customs, Defence Headquarters and other people that we think are necessary stakeholders. What we are doing now is to discuss and have their input; and take their own stake from their own perspective. And we feel that having interacted with most of the security agencies, we feel we have come to the critical stage where we also need to hear what the government side is.
“That was what we came to discuss with Mr. President. The discussion has been very frank and very fruitful. The meeting was at our instance because we feel that before we begin to move into the field, to engage the other side and other people, that are also essential to our assignment we need to discuss with the government. That was why we had to speak with the President and ask him some few questions; then know what government side is”, he siad.
In a the video obtained by AFP on Monday, which also depicted women and children apparently being held hostage, Shekau, who sat on a rug with a Kalashnikov rifle resting behind his right shoulder, said in Hausa language that “we are the ones that carried out the Bama attack,” referring to the May 7 assault that killed 55 people, mostly soldiers and policemen.
“We also carried out the attack in Baga,” he further said of the April 16 raid in the town near Lake Chad, that sparked clashes with soldiers which killed nearly 200.
Shekau also accused the security agents, saying “it was you, the security agents that went into town the following day and burnt homes and killed people at will.”
The military had denied the reported abuses by soldiers, insisting that only 37 people died in the Baga violence, including 30 suspected Islamists.
Some seven minutes into the 12-minute video message, the screen split, showing Shekau on the left with a group of unidentified women and children on the right.
The Islamist leader claimed the group was being held hostage in retaliation for the wives and children of Boko Haram members detained by the military.
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