The Senior Special Assistant to President Buhari on Media and publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu, has today faulted the Borno rice farmers who were slaughtered by Boko haram at the Zabarmari village for failing to seek clearance from the military before going to their farm.
Garba Shehu stated this today while granting an interview to BBC Service, though he claimed he was not blaming the dead but truth must be told, he said.
He disclosed that the government was worried that people are losing their lives in numbers but suggested that they should have avoided the places they know were not safe to go.
The presidential spokesperson said, “The government is sad that this tragic incident has happened. 43 or thereabout of innocent farmworkers, most of them had their throats slit by a heartless band of terrorists. People need to know what it is like in the Lake Chad Basin area.
“Much of those areas have been liberated from Boko Haram terrorists but there are a number of spaces that have not been cleared for the return of villagers who have been displaced. So, ideally, all of these places ought to pass the test of military clearances before farmers or settlers resume activities on those fields.”
When asked whether by his statement he was blaming the farmers for losing their lives? Garba Shehu insisted, they should have sought clearance from the Military before going to the farm.
He added, “Not exactly but the truth has to be said. Was there any clearance by the military which is in total control of those areas? Did anybody ask to resume activity? I have been told by the military leaders that they had not been so advised and certainly, therefore, it was a window that the terrorists exploited.”
After telling Nigerians that the Federal Government has reclaimed back all territories from Boko Haram, but admitted that a lot of places are not safe to go in Borno state, saying if any person plan to go there, they should seek Military clearance.
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