The immediate past Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General, Tukur Buratai has said that it will take Nigeria another twenty years to completely decimate Boko Haram (BH) insurgents in the North East of Nigeria.
Buratai made the shocking predication when he appeared before the Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs on Thursday for his screening and confirmation as none- career ambassador.
Federal lawmakers listened with utter disbelief as Buratai revealed it will take another twenty years before Nigeria can uproot Boko Haram and its doctrines planted over fifty years ago in parts of the North.
According to Buratai, Boko Haram has taken time to warm its way into the hearts of villagers who now harbour them in their homes.
He said the situation was made worse with the vast “ungovernable space” in the North.
According to the former Chief of Army Staff, the Military cannot win the fight against Boko Haram in the next twenty years with the current way things are being handled.
He said apart from equipping the military; there is the need to train more personnel.
He however added that more of the work lies with the political class who he said should begin to basic socio-economic needs of the people.
Buratai was Nigeria’s Chief of Staff when government in 2019 said it has “technically” defeated Boko Haram.
Earlier, the immediate past Chief of Defence Staff, General Gabriel Olonisakin (rtd), told the lawmakers that he warned Nigeria’s biggest security threat will be in its wide and unmanned forests.
Olonisakin said he conducted a research on the forests in 2018 and called the attention of State Governors who are in charge of the forest reserves to the immenint danger that has now manifested in form of banditry in different parts of the country.
Olonisakin who was in charge as CDS for Sixty-six months echoed the position of Buratai when he said the solution to Nigeria’s security challenge is multi-prone and requires all hands to be on deck.
President Muhammed Buhari had on January 26, forwarded the names of the Ex-Service Chiefs to the Senate for appointment as none-career ambassadors; a move that has not stopped generating public outcry.
