Buhari says his government will persuade the remnants of Boko Haram to embrace peace

PRESIDENT Muhammadu Buhari has stressed that his government is prepared to persuade members of the Boko Haram sect to embrace peace in the new year as the army winds up the military campaign against the insurgents.

 

Over recent weeks, the Nigerian Army has enjoyed significant success against the insurgents, pushing them out of many of their strongholds. Earlier this week, the government said that Boko Haram is effectively dead as a military force but the sect still exists politically and can still carry out bombing attacks using suicide bombers.

 

While receiving a delegation Federal Capital Territory residents and the senate president, Senator Bukola Saraki, yesterday, President Buhari said his government will put in place mechanisms to persuade members of the sect to allow peace reign. Although he did not disclose the nature the persuasion would take and those who would be involved, it is believed that talks will commence with the remnants of the sect.

 

President Buhari said: “On Boko Haram, this government is determined to make sure that we persuade them if they can be persuaded. We will use government institutions to persuade them to allow peace to reign.”

 

In an interview with the BBC earlier in the week, the President claimed that Boko Haram insurgents could no longer carry out conventional attacks against security forces or population centres, stressing that the sect had been reduced to fighting with improvised explosives devices and had been confined only to Borno State. President Buhari further stated that there could not be any development in the country without security.

 

“We appreciate that the security agencies are doing their best and their best is showing and we have to continue praying for them. There can be no development without security, so we have to continue to pray for them.

 

“We have 2m people who are internally displaced persons and 70% are women and children, while some of them are orphans who grew up not knowing their parents, tradition or culture. As leaders, we have a weighty responsibility to ensure that infrastructure for the orphans are taken care of," President Buhari added.

 

He averred that while the youths make up 65% of the country’s population, about 65% of them are unemployed. According to President Buhari, providing youths with an education, will be a major priority of his government.