Boko Haram: Borno communities emphasise citizens engagement - ITREALMS

ITREALMS ... making leadership SENSE with digital news!

Communities in Borno State have narrated their ordeals at the hands of Boko Haram terrorists while calling for more citizens' engagement in counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism efforts in North East Nigeria.

This was the outcome of consultative meeting and recent engagements led by Neem Foundation and as part of The Truth Alliance, which is a group of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) committed to unmasking the atrocities of rhe terrorist groups like Boko Haram and Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP).

Exposed! Boko Haram false narratives – ITREALMS

ITREALMS ... making leadership SENSE with digital news!

Following a recent visit by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to North East Nigeria the false narratives of the terror group, Boko Haram has been exposed, reports ITREALMS.

The delegation, led by Moncef Kartas, Head of Office and Stabilization at UNDP Nigeria, revealed critical insights that challenged Boko Haram's claims and shed light on the group's destructive and anti-Islamic agenda.

Exposed! 'Boko Haram's deception, manipulation' - ITREALMS

ITREALMS ... making leadership SENSE with digital news!

The newly formed alliance of civil society groups who work to expose the truth behind the tactics of violent extremist groups such as Boko Haram and ISWAP, have spoken about the utter disregard for human life and respect for the Islamic faith both Boko Haram and ISWAP have in response to recent atrocities.

A press statement available to ITREALMS, the group said that what is intended as a wakeup call to all those engaged in the fight to defeat violent and extremist groups in Nigeria and beyond, the Truth Alliance are exposing the truth behind recent kidnappings describing them as “very destructive to the fabric of our once peaceful society” after describing violent extremist groups as “morally bankrupt” for lying to the people of Nigeria who continue to suffer every day from their acts of violence that  leaves a trail of destruction and death.

Boko Haram now uses drones - ITREALMS

ITREALMS ... making leadership SENSE with digital news!

Boko Haram, a Nigerian-based dominant terrorist group, is now using drones in its violence attacks, reports ITREALMS.

Drones are known as unmanned aircrafts and is formerly known as Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) or Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UASs).

Boko Haram: EU trains 350 civilian JTF in self-reliance, entrepreneurship - ITREALMS

ITREALMS ... making leadership SENSE with digital news!


The European Union (EU) in collaboration with the British Council, has commenced skills acquisition and entrepreneurship training to support 350 members of the Civilian Joint Task Force on self-reliance in Borno State.

The Project Manager British Council, Mr Emmanuel Iyaji, stated this during a 2-day skills acquisition and entrepreneurship support training for the Civilian JTF members in Maiduguri, Borno capital on Wednesday.

FG expresses shock, sadness over aid worker killing by Boko Haram - ITREALMS

ITREALMS:

The Federal Government has expressed shock and sadness over the killing of another aid worker by Boko Haram on Monday, despite the actions taken by the government and the widespread appeal to save the young woman, reports ITREALMS.

In a statement issued in London on Monday, the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, described the killing as dastardly, inhuman and ungodly, saying nothing can justify the shedding of the blood of innocent people.

He commiserated with the family of the aid worker, and said the Federal Government did all within its powers to save her life.

''It is very unfortunate that it has come to this. Before and after the deadline issued by her abductors, the Federal Government did everything any responsible government should do to save the aid worker.

''As we have been doing since these young women were abducted, we kept the line of negotiations open all through. In all the negotiations, we acted in the best interest of the women and the country as a whole.

''We are deeply pained by this killing, just like we were by the recent killing of the first aid worker. However, we will keep the negotiations open and continue to work to free the innocent women who remain in the custody of their abductors,'' the Minister said.

He thanked all the friendly governments that have continued to work with Nigeria for the safe release of the abducted women, and the clerics across religious lines who have been pleading for their release.

Uboshe Uboshe/GEE

ITREALMS ... everything news digitally!

Expert flays indiscriminate release of 760 Boko Haram suspects

ITRealms:

President of the Association of Industrial Security and Safety Operators of Nigeria, Dr. Ona Ekhomu has flayed the recent release of 760 Boko Haram suspects, advising the Federal Government (FG) to exercise extreme caution in the mass release of captured Boko Haram fighters, reports ITRealms.

Ekhomu also said the caution has become necessary for the protection of society from incessant terrorist attacks by ‘inadvertently recycling insurgents into the battlefield’.

Reacting to the recent mass release of 760 Boko Haram suspects by the Joint Intelligence Center of Operation Lafiya Dole, Ekhomu said in a press statement made available to ITRealms that such a release of suspected insurgents should be based upon concrete evidence of repentance and conversion to true Islam which extols peace.

“There must be ample evidence of deradicalization” he warned, describing the release of 760 suspects as rather hasty and ill-advised which tends to worsen the threatscape of the region.

Ekhomu insisted that “The mass release of suspects without rigorous investigation of each suspect would tend to worsen an already fragile security eco-system. The JIC is an intelligence authority and not an investigative agency.”

He pointed out that the Criminal Investigation Department of the Military Provost would have been better placed to conduct these inquiries and make recommendations to the political executive for a final decision” he averred.

Ekhomu, who is the first chartered security professional in Nigeria said that in 2017 a total of 2,603 Boko Haram suspects have been released. Stressing that prior to the latest mass release, the activities of the previously released detainees should have been documented and analyzed to determine the performance of the mass release programme.

“Without such a protocol, then the insurgent release programme would appear to be opaque and arbitrary,” he decried.

Equally, the security analyst called upon the Federal Government to adequately fund the security programmes in the northeast, maintaining that frequent mass release of suspects is based upon the fact that the military authorities are not equipped to indefinitely detain prisoners of war.

“Turning the suspects over to the Borno State government appears to be a way to transfer responsibility away from the military,” he said,

Ehkomu elucidated that “ironically, it’s a nation that fights a war and not its military alone. In other words, other agencies are supposed to play their roles – the Police, the Prosecutors, the Judiciary and the Prisons. It is the general failing of these other agencies of state that is over-burdening the military and resulting in these questionable mass release programs that may have the unintended consequence of prolonging the war in the northeast.”

According to Dr. Ekhomu, the Boko Haram conflict is classified as a 4^th generation warfare, thus its an asymmetric warfare, which Boko Haram’s operational strategy is appropriate messaging to different publics and use of lethal tactics. Captured Boko Haram fighters will quickly assure their captors that they have experienced ideological rebirth as a survival mechanism, even when such assertion is untrue. However, these fighters are free to resume attacks after being handed over to the poorly-resourced Borno State government.

He urged the Federal Government to be acutely aware of the paradigm shift in warfare and formulate prisoner release decisions based upon the realities of 4^th generation warfare, adding that “When a suicide bomber blows himself or herself up in a mosque, it is a win for the insurgents.”

Ekhomu praised the Nigerian military for its bravery and brilliance in battle. However, he lamented that the military was being over-stretched by different internal security threats, and there was no need to prolong the Boko Haram conflict longer than necessary by making faulty decisions.

He called for the building of high security prison facilities in Borno State where suspects can be held for longer periods of time and be exposed to psychologists and moderate imams who can work on their conversion to mainstream Islam prior to their release. 

He said that the decision to release terrorism suspects must be made after careful psychological testing and evaluation by credentialed professionals. 

“That should form the basis for the decision to reintegrate each fighter into civil society. He said that the Borno State Government does not have the capacity to carry out the intricate assessment and evaluation of deradicalization and ideological reorientation of each Boko Haram fighter handed over to them,” he cautioned.

Chuks Egbune/GEE

ITREALMS ... everything news digitally!

82 Chibok girls freed by Boko Haram

ITRealms:

A total of 82 Chibok girls have been reportedly freed by the leadership of Boko Haram, late Saturday according to the Cable News Network (CNN), reports ITRealms.

Boko Haram, ITRealms gathered refers to by themselves as al-Wilāyat al-Islāmiyya Gharb Afrīqiyyah, and Jamā'at Ahl as-Sunnah lid-Da'wah wa'l-Jihād meaning "Group of the People of Sunnah for Preaching and Jihad"), is an Islamic extremist group based in northeastern Nigeria, also active in Chad, Niger and northern Cameroon.^”

According to CNN monitored in Lagos, the Chibok girls were freed following the successful negotiations between Boko Haram and the Nigerian government, a government official close to the negotiations confirmed to the cable TV station.

The source said the freed Chibok girls were presently in military custody in Banki, in northeastern Nigeria.

The Theater Commander of North-East has also confirmed that 82 Chibok girls were freed.

Equally, it was gathered they are on transfer to the capital, Abuja, where they will undergo medical checks and definitely reunite with their families.

ITRealms recalls that a total of 276 girls were allegedly kidnapped from the village of Chibok in April 2014.

ITREALMS ... everything news digitally!

Boko Haram: Winning the peace after the war

Commentary@ITRealms: 

I was recently in Yola at the invitation of the American University of Nigeria (AUN) to give the keynote address at the maiden business and entrepreneurship boot camp. I was very enthralled by the school, and have written about my visit and the pleasant interaction with the young minds. I will deeply cherish the recognition of “Lifetime Entrepreneurial Achievement Award” bestowed on me by the Institution.

I took the opportunity to visit the Internally Displaced Camp (IDP) at the Saint Theresa’s Cathedral, Yola. This was a very surreal experience for me; about 1500 people (there used to be 4,000), mainly women and children cramped into the compound, and sleeping in a large hall that I learnt was the former church building (the church has moved to a new building within the compound). There were flimsy cloth partitions demarcating the small spaces occupied by each family.

The obvious answer to the question I posed about the men, flooded me with sadness; most have died fighting to defend their communities. Duduwara Dawa is one of the very few displaced men at the camp.

The camp coordinator Fr. Maurice Kwairanga seemed yoked to the community and showed tremendous care towards the children within the limited resources available; and they really need help by way of food, clothing and other materials. There were also volunteers at the camp doing a very good job with co-ordination such as Jennifer Moses; I salute their sacrifice.

I accompanied my host and Dean of the AUN Business and Entrepreneurship School, Dr. Ahmad Hossieni to the camp. He had scheduled this visit at the request of the mother of Jon Eberly, the second keynote speaker from a Silicon Valley technology company, Clock Four. Jon’s mother, who is a member of the Rotary Club in California, had visited the camp previously and wanted some gifts delivered through her son.

Apparently, among the gifts that she brought in her previous visit were 75 base balls. Seeing that the balls did not go round, she had crafted an ingenuous way of making all the children happy; soccer balls! Jon had brought with him a box of half a dozen soccer balls and Ahmad had an additional three balls.

The sombre look about the children when we arrived, accompanied by sweet sounding Hymns they sang to welcome us evaporated into ecstatic joy when we unveiled the balls from the boot of the car and kicked them into the crowd of kids. The camp came alive! Boys and girls all joined in the fun of kicking the balls about.

I have never seen such happiness. How little it took to lift the human spirit, and what joy is felt by the messenger of such happiness.

I formed a ‘special friendship’ with two of the little children, Nancy and Tabita. I also got to see the roar talent of Esther Ibrahim; a little girl of about 8 years, who could do wonders with a soccer ball. She is clearly naturally gifted and will do very well in a soccer academy where she can hone her skills and possibly make a future career (any takers?). 

At my hotel room at AUN the previous day, I heard the erudite Maj. Gen. Lucky Irabor of the Nigeria Army giving an eloquent account on television of how Boko Haram Camp Zeiro in Sambisa forest was captured. What struck me as very instructive, was his charge that we work hard to win the peace after the war. The military have done their part and gallantly too. They have defeated Boko Haram, but the real work is now up to you and I, and all Nigerians; winning and securing the peace. We have to learn to be our brothers’ keeper. We have to show compassion to resettle all victims of the insurgency and rehabilitate the ones among the transgressors that can be redeemed. We need to be open handed with our generosity.

It is incomprehensible to grasp, and very disheartening to learn that people in high places diverted relief materials meant for the IDPs to be sold in markets for their personal gain, and embezzled financial donations. We must really have deadened our consciences to steal from the poor and helpless in dire situations such as these.

To dimension the scale of the problem, I understand that there are more than 2m displaced people, of whom 300k live in Camps. The rest are perhaps staying with relatives in safer areas. I was deeply shocked and touched when Margee Ensign, President of the AUN told me that at one point, a driver of the school had 50 people taking refuge with him. Needless to say that AUN herself took in a large number of displaced persons.

While I was very saddened that a suicide bomber claimed precious lives at the University of Maiduguri, I was comforted by the defiance of the School not to succumb to terror, by continuing academic activities including the first semester examinations. The mistaken bombing of an IDP Camp at Rann is very unfortunate, and our hearts go out to the dead and wounded (may their souls rest in the perfect peace), but this should not be the defining narrative of the Nigerian Air force, which has displayed exemplary bravery and played a very key role in dislodging the Boko Haram from the stronghold of the Sambisa forest. That said, extreme caution has to be exercised in future operations to ensure that this unfortunate incident is not repeated.  

Finally, I have secured the permission of Rev. Fr. Maurice Kwairanga to share his contact details (0706 133 5640, kwairangafrmaurice@gmail.com). I have also secured the permission of the President of the Rotary Club of Yola, Mr. Anthony Okoji (0706 322 1747, 0805 218 5703, anthoni.okoji@gmail.com) who escorted us to the camp and whose society is deeply involved in their welfare. If you feel moved to do something concrete to help, please do contact them directly. Every little assistance will go a long way. May God bless you abundantly in the kindness of your response.

More importantly, we should all do everything necessary to win and secure the peace, so that these brethren of ours can return to their communities to rebuild their lives and live in dignity.

*contributed by Austin Okere, the Founder of CWG Plc, the largest Systems Integration Company in Sub-Saharan Africa & Entrepreneur in Residence at CBS, New York. Austin also and serves on the World Economic Forum Global Agenda Council on Innovation and Intrapreneurship

ITREALMS ... everything news digitally!

Chibok girls: Lai says FG in touch with Boko Haram to release them

ITRealms:

The Federal Government Sunday said they are in touch with Boko Haram for the release of the remaining Chibok girls abducted over some two years ago, reports ITRealms.

The government in response to the latest video of some of the girls, by Boko Haram, the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said in a press statement made available to ITRealms by his Special Assistant on Media, Mr. Segun Adeyemi in Abuja, that the government is in touch with those purportedly behind the video, and is doing everything possible to secure the release of the Chibok girls and put an end to the horrible saga of their abduction.

''We are on top of the situation. But we are being extremely careful because the situation has been compounded by the split in the leadership of Boko Haram. We are also being guided by the need to ensure the safety of the girls,” Alhaji Mohammed said.

Stressing, ''Since this is not the first time we have been contacted over the issue, we want to be doubly sure that those we are in touch with are who they claim to be,'' he said.

Mohammed further expressed the hope that the latest development will signal the beginning of the end of the nightmare to which the girls, their families and indeed all Nigerians have been subjected since the unfortunate abduction.

ITREALMS ... everything news digitally!

FG rejects appointment of new Boko Haram leader

ITRealms:

The Federal Government of Nigeria has rejected the alleged appointment of a new Boko Haram leader, describing it as a cheap propaganda, reports ITRealms.

Reports have it that the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) has appointed a new leader for Boko Haram in the name of Abu Musab Al-Barnawi.

Reacting to the announcement, the Federal Government through the Minister of Information, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, dismissed the appointment, saying it is too late to employ such tactics to revive the defeated Nigerian terrorist organization.

He told members of the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) attending the 2016 Annual Conference of Editors (ANEC) in Port Harcourt, on Thursday during the opening ceremony.

''By the way, don't believe the cheap propaganda by the global terrorist group ISIS, which has reportedly named a new leader for Boko Haram. Our gallant military has put Boko Haram on the run and nothing will bring back the terrorists, not even the wishful thinking by ISIS,'' the Minister said in his remarks at the ongoing All Nigerian.

According to reports, ISIS, to which Boko Haram is affiliated, has named Abu Musab Al-Barnawi as the new leader of Boko Haram.

He also urged Nigerians to remain vigilant and reach out to the security agencies if they suspect any security breach in their environment.

ITREALMS ... everything news digitally!

Exclusive: Boko Haram effect: N7.9bn needed to save lives across West Africa

ITRealms:

An estimated N7,900,300,000 billion is currently required to save lives and protect those affected by the insurgency attacks by Boko Haram across the four West African countries, reports ITRealms.

The United Nations’ Assistant Secretary-General and Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for the Sahel, Mr. Toby Lanzer made this disclosure, Friday to ITRealms, saying that the humanitarian teams within the Economic for West Africa Community (ECOWAS) region needs $397 million, about N7,900,300,000 to save lives and protect those affected by Boko Haram insurgency in four countries.

Mr. Lanzer listed these countries to include Chad, Niger, Nigeria and Cameroon, all members of ECOWAS.

He also disclosed that the required amount is expected to take care of the Humanitarian Response Plans and Regional Refugee Response Plans.

Citing for instance, that in Chad, two response plans have been launched since this year to address successive waves of displacement in April and September, that is, worth $26million about N5,174,000,000 and $11.5million, about N2,288,500,000 respectively.

Mr. Lanzer revealing this via his Twitter handle @tobylanzer, lamented “Humanitarian teams need $397 million 2 save lives & protect those affected by #BokoHaram in 4 countries.”

ITRealms recalls that the Sahel is the ecoclimatic and biogeographic zone of transition in Africa between the Sahara Desert to the north and the Sudanian Savanna to the south.

Although ITRealms gathered, the Sahel is widely French-speaking, Islamic and takes its name ("shore") from Arabic. But the region, one of the poorest and most environmentally damaged places on earth, has deep troubles.

Sahel, Arabic Sahil, according to Encyclopædia Britannica is semiarid region of western and north-central Africa extending from Senegal eastward to the Sudan, thereby forming a transitional zone between the arid Sahara desert to the north and the belt of humid savannas to the south; thus Sahel stretches from the Atlantic Ocean eastward through northern Senegal, southern Mauritania, the great bend of the Niger River in Mali, Burkina Faso formerly known as Upper Volta, southern Niger, northeastern Nigeria, south-central Chad, and into the Sudan.

Noteworthy is that in the 1970s, the Sahel captured international attention when drought and famine killed nearly 200,000 people.

+Remmy Nweke (ITRealms) +United Nations
ITREALMS ... everything news digitally!

Buhari, Boko Haram disagree over release of IEDs developer

ITRealms:

The Nigerian President, General Muhammadu Buhari (rtd) has vowed not to release the developer of Boko Haram’s improvised explosive device (IED) which the sect said was a condition for releasing the Chibok girls, ITRealms reports.

 “The issue of Chibok girls has occupied our minds and because of the international attention it drew and the sympathy throughout the country and the world, the government is negotiating with some of the Boko Haram leadership.

“It is a very sensitive development in the sense that first we have to establish, are they genuine leaders of the Boko Haram. That is number one. Number two, what are their terms, the first impression we had was not very encouraging,“They wanted us to release one of their leaders who is a strategic person in developing and making Improvised IEDs that is causing a lot of havoc in the country by blowing people in Churches, Mosque, market places, motor parks and other places. But is very important that if we are going to talk to anybody, we have to know how much he is worth”.

President Muhammadu Buhari, Tuesday, in France stated that his government has kicked off negotiations with Boko Haram to secure the release of over 200 Chibok girls. It will be recalled that about 219 school girls were abducted by the sect from their school in Chibok Community, Borno State over a year ago.

Speaking with members of the Nigerian community in France under the auspices of Nigerians in Diaspora Organisation (NIDO), ITRealms learnt, the president who is currently on a three day official visit to the French country said:

 “Let them bring all the girls and then, we will be prepared to negotiate, I will allow them to come back to Nigeria or to be absolved in the community. We have to be very careful, the concern we have for the Chibok girls, one only imagine if they got a daughter there between 14 and 18 and for more than one and a half year, a lot of the parents who have died would rather see the graves of their daughters rather the condition they imagine they are in.”

Cyriacus Nnaji with agency report/GEE

 
ITREALMS ... everything news digitally!

Boko Haram kills 25, injures 32 in Sabon Gari bomb attack

 ITRealms

About 25 innocent people have been confirmed dead and another 32 critically injured in an attack at the Government Lodge in Sabon Gari area of Zaria, on Tuesday, reports ITRealms.

ITRealms also gathered that the Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, has expressed shock at the mindless attack by Boko Haram terrorists and sympathized with victims of the blast.

“I am sad that a terrorist bomb attack just killed 20 people in Sabon Gari Zaria,” according to Governor’s Twitter account.

“We call on our citizens to be vigilant and avoid crowded places like markets, mosques, churches and motor parks in the next few weeks,” he said.

The Governor had earlier put the number of the dead at 20 but the casualty figure has risen.

According to Channels TV, report monitored by ITRealms, the Red Cross officials and security agencies have evacuated the dead bodies while the 32 injured persons were taking to the Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital, Zaria and other hospitals within the city.

While the Sabon Gari blast was in the news, ITRealms learnt, a female suicide bomber reportedly blew herself up in a Mosque in Kano, even though no casualty was recorded according to information.

Cyriacus Nnaji/GEE/ ED, OPs

ITREALMS ... everything news digitally!pix: courtesy trentonline.com