Security expert and public affairs analyst, Dr. Abubakar Gana has described President Muhammadu Buhari as the messiah of Northeast, Nigeria.
Dr. Gana said he drew the conclusion based on what the current administration of President Buhari has done to secure the lives of citizens in the Northeast and to assure them that they’re part of Nigeria.
In the statement issued in Abuja as part of reports of the tour undertaken by Dr. Gana and 20 others to the Northeast recently, the public affairs analyst said no other word captures the depth of the President’s interventions and the success recorded than to refer to him as a messiah of the Northeast.
He said,”In fact, I’m not the one that described him as such but the people of the Northeast themselves who are so full of praises for Mr. President in tbe light of what he has done to secure their lives.
Dr. Gana who gave a brief background to the tour said it took him and many others to several communities in Bauchi, Gombe, Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states.
He said it was to verify claims of successes being recorded in the fight against insurgency and terrorism to ensure that people are not deceived by unnecessary propaganda.
Dr. Gana said it was only Taraba State that he did not go as part of the tour since the activities of the terrorists was more concentrated in the five aforementioned states.
The security expert said from the first hand interaction he has had with the people of the Northeast in the last two months, he was convinced that the Boko Haram terrorists group has thoroughly been defeated and it would appear that there’s nothing more the people appreciate than the current administration, which they say has liberated them from terrorists and insurgents and enabled them return to normal lives.
He said since 2015, when the current administration came on board, the people have felt the impact of the technical defeat of the insurgents through reopening of schools and markets, reopening of major roads for travelling and the constant repelling of attacks.
Speaking on specifics, Dr. Gana said it is on record that the lives of over 8 million people in the Northeast has been affected positively by the intervention of the current government through sustained efforts to clear the Northeast of terrorists.
He said the depth of the operation include military action on the insurgents, rebuilding of infrastructural facilities as well as securing retaken territories for peaceful habitation.
Dr. Gana said the current government deserves commendation in the combat operation in the Northeast because it came with new strategies and tactics that have overwhelmed the insurgents.
The Security Expert said the people confirmed to him that the fight turned against the insurgents the moment the current administration came on board and appointed new service chiefs.
“Most of the people I spoke with testified to the fact that there was a time the morale of Nigerian troops was so low owing to lack of sophisticated weapons and that they witnessed when many troops were running from the battlefield.
“They told me that they at a time had given up on ever coming back to their communities because of the way soldiers were quitting and running away but that since the current administration, they have seen confident troops raring to go to the battlefield while the insurgents began to flee.
The security expert said it is heartwarming for the people of the Northeast that the government did not leave them to their plight even after subduing the terrorists but went ahead to assist them in the rebuilding of infrastructure through the military.
“This has exposed them to the humane side of the military whom they thought are only good in fighting wars alone but they now see soldiers helping to building bridges and reconstruct roads and this has touched them,” he stated.
Dr. Gana said it is the effort of the current administration in retaking 20 local governments that has made it possible for persons displaced by insurgents to to back to their ancestral homes.
He said President Buhari has created a conducive environment for return of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) and refugees to their homes of origin.
He said from his observation, some of the communities have since resettled and have forgotten about the agonies of the past and are always praying for President Buhari to succeed.
He said, “Some of the families recall that there was a time they had to be sleeping in the bushes to avert being atacked in the night but now say they’ve gone back to farming and other commercial activities while their children have gone back to school,” he said.
Dr. Gana said it is to the credit of the current administration that the military was able to engage in non combat operations leading to the surrender of several insurgents and terrorists further reducing the threats of terrorists.
He concluded by saying that terrorists have been pushed to a hell hole in the northern fringes and emptied of any capacity to operate as they wish adding that that is why they’ve been trying to launch themsleves through attacks on soft targets.
“They typically want to give the impression that they’re intact but I’ve confirmed that they’ve been subdued,” he stated.