Minister of Defence, Christopher Musa (retd.) has called on troops on the battlefield take more aggressive stance in the fight against insurgency by eliminating Boko Haram members wherever they are.
Mr Musa, who urged the troops to find and kill the insurgents, also emphasised the need for a decisive action on the battlefield.
He spoke while addressing the troops in Maiduguri, Borno State, alongside the Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, stressing that troops must not hesitate when confronting terrorists.
“Look for Boko Haram and killed them. Is that clear? You don’t have to wait for anybody. Any Boko Haram that you find out, is your duty where ever you are deployed take them down,” the minister said on Tuesday.
He added that the era of passivity must end, warning the troops that excuse such as waiting for orders would no longer be tolerated.
Mr Musa added, “So, I don’t want to hear the aspect of somebody saying he was waiting for any order.”
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The minister reassured troops of the federal government’s commitment to providing the necessary support, equipment, and intelligence required to win the war against insurgency.
Mr Musa’s remarks trailed ongoing military operations aimed at dismantling insurgent strongholds in the North-East, where forces continue to combat terrorists to restore peace and security.
The minister’s directive also contrasted the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Olufemi Oluyede, who in a recent statement canvassed rehabilitation for terrorists and likened them.killing and to the biblical prodigal son.
Mr Oluyede, spoke at the Armed Forces inaugural lecture for the newly established Joint Doctrine and Warfare Centre (JDWC) in Abuja.
Mr Oluyede said, “But even in the Bible, we heard about the prodigal son. If there was not that window for the man to come back, would they have come back?
“So the point is that these are Nigerians, mostly. And it’s important for us to give them that window to repent, if they want, rather than pushing them to the extreme. To say, okay, ‘It’s either we kill you, or you continue with the adventure.”
The Catholic Bishop of Ondo Diocese, Jude Arogundade, who faulted Mr Oluyede’s remarks, demanded his immediate resignation.
Mr Arogundade described the comparison as “insensitive and deeply troubling,’ particularly given the continued violent attacks by insurgent groups such as Boko Haram in the North.
