Recent disagreements between the Presidency and the Borno state government are caused by people bent on sabotaging ongoing military operations against the deadly Boko Haram insurgents, a coalition has alleged.
The Coalition, an umbrella of 150 clubs and associations in Borno state, stated this at a peaceful rally in Maiduguri yesterday, held in condemnation of the deaths arising from intensified attacks by the Boko Haram.
Baba gana Gambobe and Ifeanyi chukwu, coordinator and secretary of the coalition, read a joint statement, calling on President Goodluck Jonathan to embrace Governor Shettima on the basis that the President stands to gain more when peace is restored in Borno since the provision of security rests on the Federal Government based on constitutional provisions.
They said: “We call on the President,Commander in Chief of the Nigerian Armed Forces, Dr Goodluck Jonathan to ignore elements that may be working to cause disaffection between the Presidency and Borno State Government as that will not do the country any good in the fight against insurgency.
“We know that at all times, there are elements who try to take advantage of ‘openings’ to sever relationships in order to make selfish benefits either materially or politically. We all know that President Jonathan and Governor Shettima share one thing in common: both are extremely humble.
“Therefore, any rise of nerves can only be caused by elements that do not mean well for Nigeria. It should be well understood, that Mr President’s major challenge and perhaps yardstick for his choice by electorates in whatever future endeavour is how he is able to address the current security challenges in Northeast especially in Borno and Yobe states.”
