The request by Borno State Governor, Prof. Babagana Zulum, for the Federal Government to seek the assistance of the Chadian Army to boost the counter-insurgency war, has received the backing of North East elders.
The elders, who spoke under the auspices of Coalition of North East Elders for Peace and Development (CNEEPD), reiterated their earlier call for the sack of the Service Chiefs, who were appointed in July, 2015.
In a statement by the chairman, and secretary, CNEEPD feared that not much may be achieved in the counter-insurgency operations, until a rejigging of the security architecture.
“We support the call by our dear Borno State Governor, Babagana Zulum, that Chadian soldiers should be invited to assist their Nigerian counterparts in the fight against insurgency and terrorism in the country.
“…the Chadian soldiers are known to have adequately dealt with the threat of this nature. This call is the best thing to have happened to us this year.
“We wish to remind Mr president that Nigerians voted for him and he needs to listen to them urgently on security issues.
“We, the entire management and members of Coalition of North East Elders for Peace and Development (CNEEPD) wish to reiterate our call for the immediate sack of the country’s service chiefs.
“We have high regards for the Nigeria Armed Forces knowing their capabilities and competence”, the statement said.
It added that: “We trust the ability of our soldiers to deliver and still have high confidence in them.
“All of us speaking against the service chiefs do not have personal hatred for them, as a matter of fact two of them are our sons from the North East. But we must put the country first before any other personal interest and consideration.
“Governor Zulum’s call for assistannce of Chadian soldiers is out of frustration as a chief executive of people going through so much agony.
“Mr president is doing very well…
These Service Chiefs are not irreplaceable and do not have monopoly of ideals sir. We are therefore calling on the president to immediately listen to (calls by many) Nigerians by replacing the current service chiefs for better efficiency.”
