terror war is far from over
THERE is no doubt that the on-going
massive military offensive against the
Boko Haram terrorist group, attendant on
the declaration of a state of emergency in
Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states by
President Goodluck Jonathan has
substantially crippled the capacity and
capability of the extreme sect to wreak
violence on the horrendous scale hitherto
witnessed, particularly in the North-East
zone of the country. Yet, the multiple
explosions that rocked the Sabon-Gari
area of Kano on Monday night, claiming at
least 45 lives, according to community
leaders, shows that it is still a long way to
victory over terror in the country, and
there must be no room for complacency.
As their fortified strongholds in the
North-East are routed by the Nigerian
military, the Islamic extremists will
naturally get more desperate as well as
operate more randomly, arbitrarily and
unpredictably in a way that can maximally
undermine the country's cohesion. It is
certainly not by accident that the
explosions in Kano were targeted at the
Sabon-Gari area, mostly populated by
non-indigenes. The Kano State Governor,
Rabi'u Musa Kwankwaso, was thus right
when he described the barbaric act as an
attack on Nigeria. In his words, "This
attack on Sabon-Gari is an attack on
Nigeria because Muslims and Christians
are involved. Several people of different
ethnic extractions have either lost their
lives or are critically injured. Whoever did
this thing targeted Nigeria". Political
leaders and security strategists should,
therefore, expect that the extremist sect
will, in future, most likely strike in ways
that can incite inter-ethnic, religious and
regional animosity and strife. It is
important to keep on enlightening
Nigerians to see through the sect's antics
and refuse to fall for any such bait by
maintaining the peace no matter the
provocation. Also instructive is the
observation of a community leader in
Kano, Prince Ajayi Memaiyetan, that
"What happened is that for the past two
months, we in Kano have been enjoying
the peace of the graveyard. We are
waiting for security agencies to give us
details on what really happened … The
truth is that the security is not as
effective as before because of the lull in
attacks". Increasing successes of the
security agencies in containing the Boko
Haram menace will, therefore, breed
fresh challenges of its own that the
authorities must be ready to tackle by
continuing to fine-tune their anti-terror
strategies in accordance with changing
situations. At no time can we afford a lull
in security alertness in any part of the
country because the war on terror cannot
be over until the extremists are
completely subdued. The recent arrest of
42 Boko Haram suspects in Lagos and
Ogun states adds a dangerous dimension
to the saga of terrorism in the country. It
is an indication that the sect plans to
extend its destructive activities, so far
limited to the North, to other parts of the
country. We commend the vigilance of
the security agencies which, acting on
intelligence reports, apprehended the
suspects at Ibafo trailer park and Ileke
new trailer garage in Ogun State, as well
as such locations as Aviation Quarters,
Mafoluku, Oshodi; Ketu/Mile 2 Motor
Park; Orile Trailer Park and the Bar
Beach, all in Lagos. This kind of efficiency
was also evident in March and June,
respectively, when Boko Haram suspects
were arrested in Ijora-Badia and
Kotankowa areas of Lagos before carrying
out their alleged plan to bomb specified
designations in the state. While urging
the security agencies to remain vigilant as
well as continue to sharpen their
intelligence gathering and counter-
insurgency skills, we also call on the
political authorities to expedite the pace
of economic recovery in order to create
jobs, boost prosperity and reduce the
capacity of terror groups to recruit new
members.
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