President Muhammadu Buhari on Saturday expressed his administration’s willingness and resolve to end the Boko Haram insurgency in the country following the latest attacks in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
According to a statement by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, the President spoke at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, after receiving briefing from a team of government officials he sent to carry out on-the-spot assessment of the bomb blasts recorded in Kuje and Nyanya parts of the Federal Capital Territory on Friday evening.
Shehu quoted the President as saying that for terrorism to be uprooted from the country, the society must be rid of violent extremism.
Buhari was said to have insisted that the end of insurgency was in sight despite the latest attacks.
“The defeat of Boko Haram insurgency is in sight but to remove violence and make the country safe, we must tackle the prevalence of violent extremism. In doing this, we will learn from the experience of the international community,” the President said.
Buhari was also said to have directed security agencies to raise their surveillance activities to meet the challenges of what he called “a retreating, desperate terrorist army.”
He also asked members of the public to remain aware of security in and around them.
The President sympathised with the families of the victims of the blasts as well as the families of the more than a hundred others who were killed in similar incidents a few days ago in Borno State.
Members of the presidential delegation were said to have visited the scenes of the blasts in Kuje and Nyanya.
They were also said to have visited victims of the incidents at the National Hospital and the Maitama General Hospital.
They also inspected the wards and mortuaries and consoled grieving family members on behalf of the President.
The team was made up of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr. Babachir Lawal; Chief of Staff to the President, Abba Kyari; Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Health and that of the Federal Capital Territory as well as the police commissioner in charge of the FCT.