Group to Obama: Renew Military Assistance to Nigeria

A group, Christian Association of Nigerian-Americans, (CANAN), has made a passionate appeal President Barack Obama to renew its military and technical assistance to Nigeria.
This, the group said was necessary in order for the Nigerian government to improve its efforts at confronting terrorist activities within and outside its shores.
In a statement by its coordinator, Laolu Akande, CANAN said President Obama should not rule out any potential effort in destroying and degrading Boko Haram including military options side by side with the regional force currently fighting the terrorists.
According to it, Boko Haram is as brutal as ISIS and both groups are now clearly making connections, signaling to the global community that the time to strike Boko Haram hardest is now.
CANAN is “calling on the US President Barack Obama to reinvigorate America’s support to the effort to rescue the over 200 Nigerian schoolgirls who were abducted exactly one year ago by Boko Haram terrorists.
“As the whole world marks one year after the disturbing abduction, CANAN wants the US government to renew and upwardly review its military and technical assistance to the Nigerian government’s effort and those of the neighboring countries in confronting the terrorists.

According to it, last year April 14, Boko Haram abducted the Nigerian schoolgirls while sitting for examinations in their school in Chibok, Borno State. Since then some of the girls managed to escape, but most of them are still being held captive.
CANAN said it agreed with the United Nations Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon who said earlier: “we must never forget the kidnapped Chibok girls, and I will not stop calling for their immediate release and their safe return to their families.”
He noted that in the past year, the terrorists “intensified its brutal attacks on boys and girls in Nigeria and neighbouring countries. Hundreds of thousands of children have been displaced from their homes, and deprived of their rights to live and grow up in safety, dignity and peace. Boko Haram’s killing, abduction and recruitment of children, including the use of girls as “suicide bombers”, is abhorrent.” CANAN is saying today that this has to stop!
It said the time has indeed come for instance that the US government should reconsider its previous decision to disapprove Israel’s readiness to sell Cobra Military helicopters to Nigeria as required in the Boko Haram war.
“While we acknowledge that there is an appreciable progress in the fight against Boko Haram with the involvement of Nigeria’s neighbors, still, much has to be done to completely root out this organization of terror from its bases in Africa and across its northeastern borders”, it stressed.
CANAN pointed out that while there have been conflicting claims on the fate of the girls, it is encouraged by a recent BBC that said some of the girls were sighted in Gwoza stressing that intelligence efforts be intensified with the active involvement of the US and the African militaries involved to locate, and rescue the girls and also dislodge the locations of the terrorists especially the Sambissa forest.
it expressed the hope that with the advent of a new government in Nigeria next month, there are renewed expectations the insurgency in Northeastern Nigeria will now be frontally dealt with and reminded President-elect General Muhammadu Buhari and the Vice President-elect Professor Yemi Osinbajo to keep their promise, adding that it was indeed encouraged that General Buhari has spoken of his readiness to confront the terrorists with the “collective will” of all Nigerians.
CANAN added that it will continue to support and advocate globally for the victims of terror in Nigeria as it is exploring ways to work with other national and international agencies in this mission based on the Global Platform launched late last year with United Nations agencies.