Gov Zulum tells Army to establish base in Sambisa forest

Gov. Babagana Zulum of Borno has urged the Nigerian Army to establish a military base in Sambisa Forest, to effectively stem terrorists’ activities.

He stated this during a courtesy visit by members of the House of Representatives Committee on Army, on Wednesday in Maiduguri.

The governor also urged the army to establish military base on the shores of Lake Chad and Mandara mountain that continued to be a safe haven for the terrorists.

“On the issue of completely ending it (insurgency), there’s a need for government to establish a military base in Sambisa, shores of Lake Chad and Mandara hills.”

He urged the National Assembly to ensure adequate appropriations for weapons to tackle insecurity.

Zulum also decried the porous borders in Borno and the need to secure the state bordering three countries, to contain movement of small arms fueling insecurity in the north.

He reiterated commitment to support the military in its kenetic and non-kenetic approach in tackling insurgency, adding that so far about 190,000 repentant Boko Haram members surrendered to the authorities.

According to Zulum, managing the huge number of repentant Boko Haram members is another crisis that needs stakeholders’ support.

He said the government had resettled two million out of the over three million displaced persons in the state, and stressed the need for total peace to enable the displaced persons to return to their ancestral homes.

“The continuous stay of over one million displaced persons in camps is not sustainable, particularly with the rising cases of prostitution and drug abuse”.

Earlier, the Chairman of the Committee, Rep. Abdullahi Mamudu, said they were in the state for their oversight function.

Mamudu lauded Zulum for his commitment and support to the Army and other security agencies and urged him to sustain the tempo. (NAN)