Months after the Nigerian troops liberated villages from Boko Haram
insurgents, the Federal Government has begun rebuilding of some of the
towns and villages.
Minister of Information and Culture, Alhjai Lai Mohammed disclosed
this today while briefing journalists on his recent trip to Borno
state.
He said government has commenced clean-up and rebuilding of Konduga,
Bama and Kaure towns to ensure lives come back to normal in those
areas.
“The Government of Borno has also kick-started the reconstruction
efforts being spearheaded by the Ministry of Reconstruction,
Rehabilitation and Resettlement. In fact, Governor Kashim Shettima of
Borno told me that the rebuilding of the first 1,000 homes will start
in January 2016. In Konduga, the rebuilding process has already
started,” he said.
Relating his experience during the trip to the liberated villages, the
Minister said Nigerians owe a debt of gratitude to the troops for
their patriotism, sacrifice and service.
Mohammed said: “I say this because what I saw during my trip to
Maiduguri, Konduga, Kaure and Bama last Saturday left me, and indeed
all members of my entourage, in awe of the commitment and loyalty of
the military to our country’s peace and unity.
“These are communities that bore the brunt of the deadly attacks by
Boko Haram, with Konduga in particular being attacked about 28 times!
It is a tribute to the ruggedness, professionalism, determination and
loyalty to country of our gallant soldiers that those communities,
especially Bama and Konduga, are now free from the Boko Haram
death-grip.
“From Maiduguri, where the Command and Control Centre, as well as the
headquarters of the 7 Div. are situated, what we saw are committed men
and women in uniform, starting from the highest echelon of the
military to the lowest rung of the ladder. The morale of the troops is
quite high, and they are well equipped, from what we saw even though I
must say that the provision of platforms for the military is a
continuous process.
He urged Nigerians to support the efforts of the troops in order to
win the war against insurgency in the country, saying “this is not a
war for the military alone; it is a war for all Nigerians.”
“On our part, this Ministry will soon initiate a process to bridge the
gap between the military and the media, and the structure will include
top military and intelligence officials as well as senior journalists.
The essence is to ensure a smoother information flow, with a view to
keeping the media better informed so they can in turn better inform
Nigerians about the war that is now largely won. We also plan to use
the media to sensitize Nigerians to be more security conscious,
especially now that the Christmas and New Year festivities are
approaching,” he said.