Lt. General Tukur Yusuf Buratai

The Chief of Army Staff, Lt. General Tukur Burtai, has said that the Boko Haram insurgency has lasted for long because of its mode of operation, use of propaganda and hardcore ideology.

The Army chief added that the leaders of the insurgents are some of the villagers who have lived with the locals, making it difficult to identify and arrest them.

According to Buratai,  the war against Boko Haram has improved from what it used to be years ago, but admitted that there has been a “minimal resurgence”.

“Insurgency is not what you defeat and it would just fizzle out; they would revert to other tactics. That is terrorism,” he told Daily Trust.

“They will promote propaganda, to the effect that all the institutions of government would be seen to be ineffective. This is what they are doing. They are exploiting the fault lines in our economic and political endeavours to expand the gulf of so-called discord and acrimony amongst various ethnic and religious groups.

“Why are they doing this propaganda, blocking the road and capturing individuals because they are of a particular religion? Unfortunately, they murder those individuals and send it to the world. These are propaganda strategies of the terrorists.

“These individuals may be living with you and you would not know they are terrorists. They have a series of informants and logistics suppliers. They have a series of leadership strata that live in the communities and towns nearby. They pass information and organise those that are hidden along the borders in remote areas or communities who come, attack and go back. They also have a series of recruiters.”

Related Topics:Latest NewsPoliticsSociety News