Posted on: 05:25 Sat, 19 Dec 2015



The Federal Government on Friday
issued a security alert that Boko
Haram terrorists were planning
another sensational abduction of
pupils/students or foreigners in a
desperate effort to raise funds
through ransom.

The Minister of Information and
Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said
this in a statement issued in Abuja
by his Special Adviser on Media, Mr
Segun Adeyemi.

“Boko Haram terrorists who have
been beaten and put on the run by
the military, are planning another
sensational abduction of pupils/
students or foreigners in a desperate
effort to raise funds, through
ransom, for food, medical and arms
supply,’’ he said.

Mohammed said the planned
abduction was in line with the
terrorists’ new modus operandi of
focusing on soft targets, having been
routed from their stronghold and
their capacity to stage spectacular
attacks substantially degraded.

According to him, the largely
defeated terrorists have now
concentrated their attacks on soft
targets, like motor parks, schools and
entertainment centres.

He said the terrorists had been
decimated to a level that they are
now incapable of staging spectacular
attacks like they used to do.

“The kidnap of the Chibok girls in
2014 which attracted global attention
to the terrorist group is what it is
now trying to repeat, hoping it can
find vulnerable targets, especially
schools, or a group of foreigners
outside the frontline states.

“The plan by Boko Haram is also part
of an overall strategy by the
terrorists to seek to negatively
impact on the psyche of the gallant
troops who have routed them
(terrorists) from their stronghold.

“And also give the impression that
they have not been largely defeated
by the December 2015 deadline
given by this Administration to
effectively degrade the insurgency in
the North-East.

“This is why we have decided to
issue this alert to enable the
authorities of both public primary
and secondary schools in remote
locations, particularly in the
Northern states, to upgrade their
security arrangements,’’ the minister
said.

According to him, the statement is
also aimed at alerting the general
public, operators of hotels and
entertainment centres, motor parks
and similar facilities to also upgrade
their security arrangements for the
holidays.

Mohammed assured that the Federal
Government would build on the
successes recorded by the military
which had largely met the deadline
to degrade the capability of the
terrorists.

“Smoked out of their hideouts and
badly bruised by our gallant
military, the Boko Haram terrorists
are desperate, especially in the face
of the depletion of their food
supplies.

“In their desperation, they will not
hesitate to embark on actions they
feel can still make them relevant or
enhance their survival. But the
military is ready and able to prevent
that,’’ he said

Source: Vanguard