July 25, (THEWILL) – The Presidency on Sunday, said security forces are not helpless in stemming the tide of insecurity confronting the country.
Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, was reacting to a new video released by the train attack terrorists in which they threatened among other things, to kill some of their captives, sell off some others and kidnap both President Muhammadu Buhari and Kaduna State Governor Nasir El Rufai if their demands are not met quickly enough.
In a statement issued on Sunday, the Presidential spokesman, explained that punitive action like the popular call for carpet bombing of the known locations may assuage the desire of an angry public for revenge, but what about the hostages? They have committed no offence. All they did was to board a train.
While stressing that President Muhammadu Buhari, has provided necessary moral and financial backing to the security agencies, it added that the Presidency expected positive result on the issues at stake.
He knocked the terrorists for using what he described as propaganda to compel the government to yield to their demands.
“It suffices to say that the security forces are not relenting. They are acutely aware of their duties, responsibilities, and what the nation expects of them. Whenever they embark upon those actions, they expect that the public should provide them with the needed support”, Shehu said, adding that the nation’s security forces are not helpless and will not display their tactics to the media.
As Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Shehu said President Muhammadu Buhari, has been supporting security agencies by boosting their morale and providing the needed equipment.
“The Presidency, in the meantime wishes to reassure the public that the President has done all, and even more than what is expected of him as Commander-in-Chief by way of morale, material and equipment support to the military and expects nothing short of good results in the immediate”, he said.
The statement titled ‘Latest Version of Terror Propaganda and Military Readiness’ read: “Terrorist activity using propaganda and the use of violence to force governments to accept or submit to political demands is not new all over the world.
“The country’s security and defense forces are not clueless or helpless. They have their plans and ways of doing things that they will not display in the media.
“The dilemmas in dealing with the specific case of train terrorists are manifold: punitive action like the popular call for carpet bombing of the known locations may assuage the desire of an angry public for revenge, but what about the hostages? They have committed no offense. All they did was board a train.
“Terrorism is a global scourge that must be fought by all actors- the military, the civilian population and the communication service providers. This is the only way safe havens for terrorists are eliminated in every part of the world.
“To help the nation against the ongoing situation, the media must increase their support for the fight against the exploitation of the internet and social media for terrorist purposes.”
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