North Eastern Governors Forum (NEGF) has called on the Federal Government to seek foreign intervention from neighboring countries to end insurgency in Nigeria. The resolution was reached in Bauchi state where they held a regional meeting to float a regional security outfit in line with the 1999 constitution and guidelines from the service Chiefs.
Borno state Governor, prof. Babagana Umara Zulum, the chairman of the forum said, “I call on the Federal Government to seek support from our neighbors, especially, Niger, Chad, and Cameroun with a view to providing a joint action that will assist in ending the insurgency.
He further suggested that the Federal Government should consider the option of involving mercenaries with the view of ending the crises, saying the commitment seems to be less, suggesting that if the insurgency must end, there must be total commitment.
Governor Zulum said, “We must seek external support and ensure that mercenaries are hired to end insecurity. On our part, in addition to the logical, logistics, and financial support we have been rendering to the armed forces in their fight against insecurity in the sub-region, we should also look into the possibility of forming a security outfit within the ambit of constitutional precedence and professional possibility.”
He said protecting schools in this era of abduction has become an urgent matter in this regard as the provision of urgent security in schools has become a compelling necessity.
Zulum reiterated that Borno state has the most excruciating experience when the terrorist first abducted 200 schoolgirls from Chibok in 2014.
He lamented that though the federal government tried its effort in rescuing the girls, a substantial part of them were left to their fate in the hand of the terrorist until today.
He also cited similar experiences in Dapchi, Yobe state, Kankara in Kastina and kagura in Niger, and finally, Jengebe in Zamfara of recent saying all this happen within this era of insecurity which is a pointer that more has been left undone in protecting the vulnerable children.
He, therefore, urged his colleagues that appropriate strategy has to be deliberately deployed if meaningful development has to be achieved in securing the boarding schools.
In an event for whatever reason security could not be provided for these boarding schools, then these schools should be converted today secondary schools, Zulum added.
In his remark, the Bauchi state Governor, Bala Mohammed opined that centralized security architecture was obsolete and therefore, advocate the establishment of state police.
He said, “The urgency of the problem demands that we must be innovative and deploy out-of-the-box security infrastructure. To allow ourselves to be confined to a dysfunctional security apparatus, while enemies ravage our lands and mortgage the future of our children, defeats Nigeria’s political leaders.
He lamented that the security situation is the real monster that is testing the ability of their leadership; he admitted that if it is by public opinion, they have failed as leaders. Because he said many in their domain have resolved to self-help and that is a pointer to anarchy.
