Borno State Governor, Kashim Shettima has advised the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs, Doyin Okupe, to refrain from making commentary that will only attract enemies to the Presidency.
Shettima was referring to statements made by Mr. Okupe where he said Boko Haram’s weaponry was not more superior than the military and said Shettima who had made the statement was just a civilian who lacked the capacity to make the claim.
Shettima said, “The statement was rather unfair and insensitive to the sorrowful plight of Borno people and its government. It is an irony to realise that while Okupe didn’t find it worthy to hold a news conference in sympathy with the people of Borno State and to join in condemning the horrible serial attacks that left nearly 300 innocent citizens killed in February alone, he found it very urgent to try to take advantage of an honest opinion just to show his face on television in the name of doing his job.
“At the end, it is Okupe that would attract ill-feelings of the people towards the Presidency and not his targeted prey. First let me say with emphasis that Governor Kashim Shettima has the highest regard for the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Dr Goodluck Ebele Jonathan and appreciates the President’s continued efforts in the last two and half years in tackling the Boko Haram insurgency.
“Governor Shettima equally holds the Nigerian Armed Forces in a very high esteem and he has since proved that by his devoted support to them as successive leaders of the forces have differently confirmed. The Defence Headquarters in Abuja once described Governor Shettima’s support to the armed forces as extraordinary.
“The Army leadership in Borno once said Governor Shettima treats them as the 28th local government area in the state, just to express how much attention they get from the Governor.
“The Nigeria Police and the department of State Security feel the same way of Shettima’s administration and so do all paramilitary organisations in the state as can be confirmed from each of them.
“It is on record that Governor Shettima has in the last two and half years been corresponding with the Presidency through oral and written channels but at no time did the Governor try to take advantage of such correspondence to undermine the Presidency. The governor’s very honest remark was a case of ‘one who wears the shoes knows where it pinches’.
“The Governor knows exactly what the problems are. A leader must be bold enough to tell the truth so that solutions can be found to critical situations. Dr Doyin Okupe should kindly note that if he is finding a governor to drive any rift with the Presidency, he has not found one in Shettima because those who know Shettima know him to be honest, courageous, respectful, humble but also dogged. Governor Shettima will certainly not be one of Okupe’s tool for showing his face on Television. Okupe should kindly be reminded that as a Public Relations Officer, part of his job is to interprete situations correctly to the Presidency, attract goodwill and create more friends for the Presidency and not to create rift. Dr Okupe would have scored a good point if he took time to visit Borno State, interact with the government, the people and the military, especially those on the field so he could have first hand information, rather sitting in the comfort of his office in Abuja and disregarding the sensitivity of highly traumatic people for no other reason but cheap goal of showing he is working.”