By Sumaila Ogbaje
Building Resilience Against Violent Extremism, Insurgency and Terrorism (BRAVEIT), a pressure and anti-terrorism group, has expressed confidence in the military and other security agencies efforts at ending insecurity.
The National Coordinator of BRAVEIT, Dr Muhammad Abubakar, stated this in a statement titled: Nigerian Militarys Strides Against Terrorists, Other Criminal Elements: Indeed, an End to Insecurity is Nigh on Tuesday in Abuja.
Abubakar said the group had continued to condemn attacks by Boko Haram and the Islamic State of West African Province (ISWAP) terrorists, bandits, kidnappers, pirates, ritualists, oil vandals, and militia groups, among other criminal elements.
He said the gruesome attacks, alongside vicious acts of criminalities stage-managed by criminal-minded persons, had led to loss of lives, emotional and psychological trauma, physical injuries, and loss of valuable properties.
According to him, it is as a result of the unending wave of these security challenges that the country has been under the yoke of pervasive insecurity, in the last few years.
Nevertheless, our BRAVEIT, as a pressure group, is tremendously proud of the efforts of the countrys security agencies, towards tackling insecurity in the land permanently.
Devoid of sentiment, our BRAVEIT, wish to applaud, immensely, the remarkable strides of the Nigerian Army troops, in particular.
Ordinarily, it is not part of their statutory and constitutional mandates. However, the Nigerian Army, first under the leadership of Lt.-Gen. Tukur Buratai, Nigerias Ambassador to the Republic of Benin; and now, under the stewardship of Lt.-Gen. Faruq Yahaya, has greatly helped other sister security agencies stem the tide of internal unrests.
Under the present Chief of Army Staff, COAS, Gen. Yahaya, no fewer than 36,000 ISWAP-Boko Haram insurgents and their families, between last year July and March this year, renounced terrorism.
Similarly, troops of the Nigerian Army, indeed deserve our plaudits for the brutal war they have continued to wage against ISWAP and Boko Haram, in recent times.
In the last three months, troops of the Joint Task Force, Operation Hadin Kai (OPHK) neutralised 126 Boko Haram and ISWAP terrorists in the North-East.
It Is an open secret that not only the fighters, but top Commanders/Leaders of both ISWAP and Boko Haram, such as Sani Shuwaram and Al-Barnawi, were recently eliminated in deadly military operations conducted by troops in the North East, he said.
Abubakar said the troops had depleted the ranks of bandit groups in Sokoto, Zamfara, Niger, Katsina, Kebbi, and Kaduna States where wanted bandit leaders had met their waterloo during combat operations.
He also said that the recent ranking of Nigeria in the 2022 global terrorism index (GTI) from fourth to sixth position was a clear indication of the dogged achievements of the Nigerian army.
Taking into cognisance the aforementioned landmark efforts of the Nigerian army, we at BRAVEIT, summarily conclude that the days of the monstrous insecurity are numbered, while its end is nigh.
However, we are calling on the Nigerian Army leadership and its troops not to rest on their oars.
They must not let their guards down as they continue to pummel ISWAP-Boko Haram fighters, and rampaging armed bandits, most especially.
They must, as a matter of fact, continue to devise innovative and potent combat strategies that will permanently defeat all criminal elements holding the country to ransom, in no distant future, he said.
BRAVEIT coordinator cautioned politicians and detractors against politicising security issues.
He also called on all patriotic citizens to continue to lend their support to the Nigerian army and its troops in the ongoing operations across the country. (NAN) (www.nannews.ng)
Source: NAN News