Former Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Tukur Buratai (retd.), on Friday, has stated that, it was the government’s decision and not that of the army to rehabilitate repentant Boko Haram members. Stressing that he cannot be tasked with the job of naming those financing terrorism in Nigeria. He said that those financing terrorism within the country are known, but the government has its reasons for refusing to release their names to the public.
Buratai further revealed that, “The initial concept that we had was that we gave them a timeline to surrender in 2016, and if they surrendered, we gave them a free passage and handed them over to appropriate agencies to rehabilitate them,” he added.
On naming the financiers of terrorism in Nigeria, he said, You cannot say I should be responsible for naming the financiers of terror. It’s not just about mentioning names; those agencies know why the names are not released. Action should be taken; these individuals are still within society today, and they are known.
“I take responsibility for certain things that are strictly the Nigerian Army’s responsibility.”
During the show, he also decried the security challenges facing the country, calling for improved intelligence to address the issue. He also called on the government to recruit more security agents to make the country safer.
