Following recent attacks by remnants of the Boko Haram insurgents in parts of Borno State, Governor Kashim Shettima, weekend, held an emergency security meeting with heads of the Nigerian Army, Air Force, Police and the Department of State Services, DSS, aimed at stepping up measures on increased surveillance to forestall further security breach, like reported by vanguardngr.com.
Before the meeting with security chiefs, Governor Shettima had earlier held a three three-hour closed-door meeting with the Theater Commander, Operation Lafiya Dole, Major General Leo Irabor at the Governor’s Office, Maiduguri.
During the meeting, the governor was briefed over recent attacks and ongoing military operations while discussions were held with assurances that the remnants of the insurgents were on suicidal mission given their displacement from their former Sambisa forest headquarters.
Special Adviser on Communications and Strategy to Governor Shettima, Malam Isa Gusau, said in a statement yesterday, that after meeting with the Theater Commander, who is not a member of the State Security Council, Shettima presided over an emergency meeting of the state Security Council that involved core armed forces.
Held at the council chambers of the Government House, the meeting had in attendance the General Officer Commanding, 7 Division of the Army, Brigadier General Victor Ezugwu; the Commander, 79 Composite group of the Nigerian Air Force, Air Commodore Charles Oho; the Borno State Commissioner of Police, Damian Chukwu; the Garrison Commander, 7 Division of the Army, Brigadier General Jibrin Mohammed; the State Director of the DSS, Suleiman Kankia; Commandant of the Nigerian Civil Defense Corps, Ibrahim Abdullahi; the Secretary to the State Government, Usman Jidda Shuwa, the Attorney General and Commissioner of Justice, Kaka Shehu Lawan and the Permanent Secretary in charge of security.
At the end of meeting, new guard locations were established in some routes across the state to curtail the movement of remnants of Boko Haram fighters; deployment of security personnel to various locations were increased with more members of Civilian JTF (youth volunteers involved) while the Governor gave approval for release of additional patrol vehicles to security agencies for increased surveillance.
The governor also approved logistics to compliment efforts of the Federal Government in strengthening armed forces while measures were adopted to strengthen the Civilian JTF and hunters. The meeting also reviewed synergy between armed forces and volunteers with steps adopted to increase collaboration and clamp down on cattle rustling used by insurgents to raise funds.
The council deliberated on recent false information spread by mischief makers to cause disaffection between armed forces and volunteers particularly the Civilian JTF with the council warning mischief makers against destabilizing the emerging peace across the State.
