The Federal Government has assembled 1000-strong military force,
comprising the army, air force, police and the civil defence to launch
fierce attacks on the bandits terrorising the villages and towns of
Zamfara State.
Following directives by President Muhammadu Buhari, the Nigerian Air Force
(NAF) has begun the deployment of fighter aircraft to Katsina, the airport
with the closest proximity to Zamfara State to make for immediate and
effective response to the menace of the bandits.
This had not been possible in the past because there was no fuel depot
facility in Katsina, but NAF has devised a way around the problem.
The President has also authorised the engagement by NAF, of advanced
satellite surveillance technology to help in accurate detection of
movement and locations of the bandits.
The government had to go to this extent because of the limitations of
conventional surveillance, as the use of satellite technology could make
the task of NAF less problematic.
Following directives from the President, at the weekend, the Chief of Air
Staff, Air Marshall Sadiq Abubakar, was in Gusau where he met the Deputy
Governor of the State.
The Chief of Air Staff reiterated the President’s pledge that he would
never abandon victims of attacks to their fate, reaffirming that security
remains one of the cardinal pillars of his campaign promises and no leader
would be happy to see his own citizens killed by criminal groups across
the country.
It will be recalled that since his election, the President has kept faith
with his promises to re-equip and motivate the country’s military and
other security services.
The army and other security services are now better equipped and motivated
to face the challenges of their responsibilities.
The Presidency, therefore, appeals to all Nigerians to unite and speak
with one voice on security issues and urges politicians to stop exploiting
national security challenges.
Those praying for the President to fail in this effort can be likened to
one stabbing oneself in the heart and celebrating about it.
In this regard, security should not be reduced to petty politics as doing
so could only embolden the terrorists and other murderous gangs.
We therefore appeal to members of the Nigerian media to avoid unhelpful
and deleterious sensationalism in the coverage of events that border on
national security.
The media should under no circumstances make the bandits or terrorists
feel like super stars because doing so could hurt all of us.
Terrorists seek to achieve maximum publicity and they do so by launching
large scale attacks on soft targets and the media must resist every
attempt to play into their hands unwittingly.