Some renowned activists from the North have begun campaigns to support the federal government’s peace efforts in the region.
Tagged NorthIsHealing Campaign, the group said the movement is dedicated towards the healing, resettlement and rehabilitation process of northern Nigeria.
Speaking with newsmen in Abuja on Sunday, the convener, Suleiman Dogara, said Nigerians must rally round President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration in its quest to bring lasting peace across the country.
He said things could have been worse if the Buhari administration had not taken proactive steps in the last six years to decimate the Boko Haram group and other terrorist groups in the country.
Quoting a Human Rights Watch report released in 2016, Dogara recalled that over 10,000 Nigerians were killed by terrorists between 2010 and early 2015 while two million were displaced.
By the beginning of 2015, he said, Boko Haram had seized control of 17 local government areas (LGAs) across parts of the northeast in Adamawa, Bauchi, Borno, and Yobe states.
However, Dogara recounted the instant success made by troops following Buhari’s emergence with former Chief of Army Staff Lt Gen Tukur Buratai (rtd) leading the charge.
The activists said not only did Boko Haram receive a bloody nose from Maiduguri to Abuja and other parts of the country; they were also flushed out to the fringes of Lake Chad.
Dogara added that the Armed Forces have achieved this by working with other security agencies to build on the solid legacies for the good of Nigeria.
The group said the level of collaboration between sister security agencies played a vital role in turning the tide in favour of the nation.
Comrade Dogara also commended the intelligence network of the country which forestalled external invasion of the country by terrorists due to timely warning by the appropriate secret agencies.
He said the essence of the campaign is to tell naysayers that things are getting better and will get even better.
Dogara noted that the success recorded by troops has made it possible for establishments like the National Emergency Management Agency and North-East Development Commission to be able to freely move materials to the remotest parts of the country to provide aides to IDPs and rebuild the North.
