President Goodluck Jonathan noted that Nigeria is yet to win the war against terror, however the President expressed optimism that the report submitted to his office by the Presidential Committee on Dialogue and Peaceful Resolution of Security Challenges in the North, more popularly called “Boko Haram” committee.
Speaking at Aso rock where the event held, the President said, “We have to thank you for concluding (this assignment) though, we can’t say that we have won the war. But listening to the address by the chairman, we believe that the document you have submitted will help us with the follow up action.
“Finally, we will be able to bring the issue of the excesses of the Boko Haram to a close. We never experienced this kind of internal terror.
“Even external terror, Nigeria has never been a victim of external terror, not to talk about internal terror group that came up surprisingly and became so violent that it is almost becoming classified as one of the most violent groups all over the world”, he stated.
Making further comments on the recommendations presented by the committee, the President said there would be no compensation for victims of Boko Haram. He did however say government would assist those adversely impacted get back on their feet.
He continued: “You have made recommendations; one of them you have suggested the setting up of an advisory committee on continuous dialogue. This I also believe in.
“We always say that even in war situations, finally, people must discuss at the conference table to make sure that people live in peace.
“Force alone, no matter how, cannot bring peace. People must be willingly ready to live in peace.
“We agree with you that even though this committee is today winding down its activities, we need to set up a follow-up committee that will concentrate on dialogue so that some of these issues you raised, that committee will be able to anchor them properly working with other departments of government”
“Government is not going to compensate. It is not an issue of compensation, but how do we assist people who have suffered to get back to business one way or the other?
“Government will look into this and other recommendations in your report and see that the right decisions are taken.”