The Governor of Borno State, Prof. Babagana Zulum, has urged the military not to relocate residents of Minok and Jakana communities in Kaga LGA of the state.
Zulum made the appeal while noting that moving the residents to Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps in the state capital, Maiduguri as planned by the military would only complicate the humanitarian crises in Borno.
The governor visited the communities Tuesday in the wake of terrorist attacks in the areas over the weekend.
Zulum said, “I call on the chief of army staff (COAS), Lt. Gen. Tukur Burutai, to refrain from the action.
“In as much as possible, we need to commend the federal government’s effort in the counter-insurgency operation, but we are not in support of displacing these communities.
“We are fully behind the military and police with a view to condone and search exercise in the communities to arrest and prosecute all those involved in nefarious activities.
“But we do not want the communities to be displaced. The federal and state government, the National and State Emergency Management Agencies (NEMA and SEMA), humanitarian and development partners should be notified.
“The police, Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF) and other security agencies should also be notified so that we can make adequate arrangements.
“I am sure that no information had been passed to the police, the Department of State Security Service (DSS), as well as the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) with respect to the planned evacuation of Jakana and other communities to Maiduguri.”
Zulum added that since the Maiduguri-Damaturu Road has remained open since 2011, it was counterproductive to relocate communities along the route.
He called on the Federal Government to protect the lives and properties of residents of the communities.
Furthermore, he appealed to residents to collaborate with the military to flush out the insurgents.
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