The Deputy Theatre Commander of Operation Lafiya Dole, Maj-Gen. Felix
Omoigui; has urged Governor Babagana Zulum of Borno state to be
mindful of his remarks against troops fighting Boko Haram insurgency.
Zulum last month, allegedly accused troops of attacking his convoy,
while visiting Baga town to assess security situation northern part of
state.
The Baga attack; was believed to have been carried out by Boko Haram
terrorists, but the visibly angry Governor attributed it to a sabotage
of the Nigerian Army.
The decade long Boko Haram insurgency, has also claimed 36,000 lives
with the destruction of property worth $9 billion (N3.42 trillion) in
Northeast states of Borno, Adamawa and Yobe.
General Omoigui gave the warning Friday, while briefing journalists on
military’s investigation on the Baga attack at Maimalari Cantonment,
Maiduguri.
He said that after military’s investigation into alleged attack,
Zulum’s claims were however, untrue.
According to him; “The governor of Borno state believed these
allegations levelled against troops of the 19 Brigade in Baga given
his recent utterances,” warning that remarks of highly placed persons;
are capable of demoralizing troops’ morale in fighting Boko Haram
insurgency.
“Zulum’s remarks could negatively impact on the operations and
confidence of the military and locals in Northeast region,” he noted.
He said allegations of such nature; could be avoided if the military
authority was contacted on issues concerning troops’ activities before
going public.
Omoigui further warned: “The realizations that the allegation emanated
from security agencies could trigger reactions and animosity among
troops and attendant negative consequences.”
He added that event the allegations that; troops were engaged in
farming in the area were also false.
According to him, prohibition of troops from engaging in farming and
fishing activities in areas of responsibility is contained in the
standing operating procedures.
He insisted that the allegations were conjured by some overzealous
security agencies; who for personal glory and without recourse for
tenets of inter-agency cooperation decided to propagate falsehood.
“Our investigative team found that the entire area of Baga was too
heavily mined with improvised explosive devices (IEDs) to encourage
any farming activity,” he added, stating that about 55 land mines were
detonated by Army since the recapture of town in February, 2015.
