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JTF Kills 20 Boko Haram Fighters
Fighters linked to the radical Islamic terrorist network Boko Haram attacked a military base in Munguno, Borno State in an assault that left at least 20 people dead, as the network’s leader denied any peace talks with the federal government.
The attack in the village of Munguno, some 200 kilometers (125 miles) from the city of Maiduguri, punctuated the video statement by Abubakar Shekau that said Nigeria will remain under attack by the group until the multi-ethnic nation is ruled under Islamic law.
Shekau also threatened the man who in recent months claimed to be a leader of Boko Haram and said that the group wanted to agree to a cease-fire with Nigeria’s security forces.
The attack yesterday, coupled with the recent kidnappings of foreigners claimed by Boko Haram and its affiliates, offered fresh doubts about the ability of the federal government to stop the bloodshed, despite its deployment of more security forces in the region.
“Whoever kills any of our members should await a grave retaliation from us,” Shekau said in the video in the Hausa language of Nigeria’s predominantly Muslim north. “We will continue waging war against them until we succeeded in establishing an Islamic state in Nigeria, he said.”
The attack on Munguno saw fighters arrive in SUVs and kill a local village leader, witnesses who spoke to newsmen said. The fighters later attacked a barracks at Munguno with gunfire and explosives, witnesses said.
In a statement, military spokesman, Lt. Col. Sagir Musa said that 20 “Boko Haram terrorists” were killed, without acknowledging that, at least, one civilian had been killed. Musa also did not say if any soldiers had been wounded or killed in the attack.
Another security official, who requested anonymity as he could not speak to journalists, confirmed the attack occurred, but acknowledged details remained sketchy about the incident.
The attack yesterday comes after the release of the new Shekau video. A journalist in northeast Nigeria received the video Friday from men he said he didn’t know. The journalist began sharing the video with colleagues late Saturday. While the AP could not immediately independently verify the authenticity of the video Sunday, the man on the video looked like Shekau and spoke like the Boko Haram’s leader.
The video carried no date, but Shekau directly referenced the activities and claims of a man who has identified himself as Sheikh Mohammed Abdulaziz, a self-proclaimed second-in-command in Boko Haram.
In November, a man with a similar voice as Abdulaziz told journalists in a telephone conference call that Boko Haram was willing to enter into peace talks if they were held in Saudi Arabia and involved former military ruler, Muhammadu Buhari.
However, Buhari refused to take part and no such talks took place as attacks continued.
In January, Abdulaziz told journalists in Maiduguri that a cease-fire would soon emerge that never did.
In the video, Shekau denies knowing Abdulaziz.
“I swear by Allah that Abdulaziz or whatever he calls himself did not get any authority from me to represent me in any capacity. I do not know him,” Shekau says. “And if we per adventure encounter Abdulaziz and his group, I swear by Allah we are going to send them to the grave judgment that Allah has prescribed for their likes in the holy book.”
In the video, Shekau also says the group has had difficulty putting its messages online and blamed government interference for having to now rely on couriers to reach the public. The last Shekau video seen was posted to the Internet in late November.
Boko Haram, whose name means “Western education is sacrilege,” has conducted a guerrilla campaign of bombings and shootings across the north over the last two years. Boko Haram is blamed for at least 792 killings last year alone. The group’s command-and-control structure remains unclear, though it appears to have sparked several splinter groups.
A group of men claiming to belong to Boko Haram claimed responsibility for the kidnapping of seven French tourists from northern Cameroon late February — a first for the group.
Meanwhile, a Boko Haram splinter group known as Ansaru has claimed the recent kidnappings in the north of a British citizen, a Greek, an Italian, three Lebanese and one Filipino, all employees of a Lebanese construction company called Setraco.
Despite the deployment of more soldiers and police to northern Nigeria, the soldiers have been unable to stop the killings.
Rivers State Head of Service, Dr (Mrs) Inyingi Brown, has called on rural communities in the State to embrace the Rural Access and Agricultural marketing project (RAAMP) with a view to improving their living conditions.
This follows the ongoing sensitization campaign by the State Project Implementation Unit (SPIU) visits to Degema, Abonnema, Afam headquarters of Degema, Akuku Toru and Oyigbo Etche and Omuma local government areas respectively.
Dr Brown who was represented by the Deputy Director, Special Duties in her office, Mrs Dein Akpanah, said RAAMP was initiated by the Federal Government and World Bank to economically empower rural dwellers.s
She said the World Bank understands the plights of rural farmers and traders in the State, and therefore came up with the programme to address them.
According to her, RAAMP will improve the conditions of farmers, traders and fishermen, and therefore, behoves on every rural communities in the State to embrace the programme.
The Head of Service also said the programme would support the youths to be gainfully employed while bridges and roads will be built to link farms and fishing settlements.
Also speaking, the State project coordinator, Mr Joshua Kpakol, said the programme has the potential of creating millionaires among farmers and fishermen in the State.
Kpakol who was represented by Engr. Sam Tombari, said RAAMP would help farmers and fishermen to preserve their produce.
According to him, the project will build cold rooms and Silos for preservation of crops and fishes while access roads will also be created to link farmers and fishermen to the market.
He, however, warned them against any act that will lead to the suspension of the projects by the World Bank.
Kpakol particularly warned against acts such as kidnapping, marching ground, gender based violence and child labour, adding that such acts if they occur may lead to the cancellation of the project by the World Bank.
During the visit to Oyigbo local government area, Mr Joshua Kpakol, said the team was there to let them know how they will benefit from the Raamp.
The coordinator who was personally at Oyigbo said the World Bank introduced the project to check food insecurity in the State.
He said already 19 states in Nigeria are already benefitting from the project and called on them to embrace the project.
Meanwhile, stakeholders in the three local government areas have commended the World Bank for including their areas in the project.
They, however, complained over the incessant attacks by pirates on their waterways.
At Degema, King Agolia of Ke kingdom said land was a major problem in the kingdom.
King Agolia represented by High Chief Alpheus Damiebi said many indigenes of the kingdom are willing to go into farming but are handicapped by lack of land.
Also at Degema, the representative of the Omu Onyam Ekeim of Usokun Degema kingdom, Osoabo Isaac, said Degema has embraced the programme but needed more information on the implementation of the programme.
Similarly, while High Chief Precious Abadi advised that the project should not be narrowed to only crop farming, a community women leader, Mrs Orikinge Eremabo Otto, called for the construction of cold rooms in all fishing settlements in the area.
At Abonnema, Mr Diamond Kio linked the problem of the area to incessant piracy along waterways.
He also expressed fears over the possibility of the project being hijacked by politicians.
Also at Abonnema, a stakeholder, Ikiriko Kelvin, called on the World Bank to design an agricultural project that will suit the riverine environment, while at Oyigbo, HRH Eze Boniface Akawo expressed satisfaction with the project.
John Bibor
The political mudslinging between the Senate leadership and Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan continued yesterday as the Senate named Senator Aniekan Bassey as the new Chairman of the Committee on Diaspora and Non-Governmental Organisations.
Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, announced the appointment during yesterday’s plenary, confirming Bassey’s replacement of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, who is currently on suspension.
Akpoti-Uduaghan was reassigned to the Diaspora and NGOs Committee in February after she was removed as Chair of the Senate Committee on Local Content during a minor reshuffle.
Bassey is the senator representing Akwa Ibom North-East Senatorial District.
Although no reason was given for her removal yesterday, the change is believed to be connected to her unresolved suspension.
In May, Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court ordered her reinstatement and directed her to tender an apology to the Senate.
However, the Senate has insisted it has not received a certified true copy of the court judgment.
Akpoti-Uduaghan who represents Kogi Central, has yet to resume her legislative duties despite a recent court ruling that voided her suspension.
In a televised interview on Tuesday, Akpoti-Uduaghan said she was awaiting the Certified True Copy of the judgment before officially returning to plenary, citing legal advice and respect for institutional process.
Although the Federal High Court described her suspension as “excessive and unconstitutional”, a legal opinion dated July 5 and attributed to the Senate’s counsel, Paul Daudu (SAN), argued that the ruling lacked any binding directive to enforce her reinstatement.
Akpoti-Uduaghan, one of only three female senators in the current assembly, said the continued delay in allowing her return was not only a denial of her mandate but also a blow to democratic representation.
“By keeping me out of the chambers, the Senate is not just silencing Kogi Central, it’s denying Nigerian women and children representation. We are only three female senators now, down from eight,” she said.