The Northern Elders Forum has said that former President, Goodluck Jonathan, doubted the abduction of Chibok girls and failed to heed good counsel on the best approach to employ in defeating the Boko Haram insurgents while he was in power.
Deputy National Leader of the Northern Elders Forum, Dr. Paul Unongo, said Jonathan had the opportunity to be credited with ending Boko Haram, but he never listened.
Unongo said on Wednesday, that the recommendations of NEF, which was ignored by Jonathan, is now being utilised by President Muhammadu Buhari, in the war.
“We (NEF) have not written any letter to President Buhari on Boko Haram. I am sure he picked up the recommendations we sent to Jonathan and they are working for him. NEF didn’t condemn Jonathan because he is Jonathan. We gave Jonathan a piece of advice.”
“We were talking to him for over two years. We told him that he cannot fight Boko Haram with obsolete equipment and we told him that the battle was not only about using arms. We told him to use psychological intelligence.”
“We actually wanted him to get the credit for winning the deadly Boko Haram war. He (Jonathan) doubted the kidnap of the Chibok girls and actually was seen on the television dancing azonto. Our people were being killed in hundreds. This was the height of insensitivity and we just had to complain about that. We complained creatively.”