‘Only political solution can end insurgency in North East’

Borno State governor, Babagana Zulum, on Friday said government must apply political solution to end the issue of insurgency in the country.

Zulum, who spoke to State House correspondents after meeting President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, explained that kenetic measures would not solve the problem.

The governor said, “the kenetic measures will not solve the problem, there must be some certain political solutions.

Among the political solutions are the issues of supporting the Nigerian youths with means to earning their livelihood.

“There is need for us to address the root causes of the problem. One of the greatest root cause of the insurgency is poverty.

So government at all levels job should create opportunities for the youths, enabling environment for the poor to have access to their farmlands.

“That is what I have been advocating for since I assumed the mantle of leadership as governor of Borno state.

We want to ensure people return to their communities, people have access to their farmlands, their livestock farms, aquaculture farms.

I think this is the only solution, military solution alone will never solve the problem”, he stated.

According to him, Borno state government has returned 100,000 Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) to their ancestral homes in the last one year, as peace is gradually returning to the north east region of the country.

“I’m glad to inform Nigerians that there is gradual return of peace to the north east region particularly in Borno state.

The gradually return of people to their respective localities is a symbol of peace, so far so good we are doing well, we need continuous support from the Nigerian military, we need sustainable support to ensure that this madness is brought to an end”.

“We have received tremendous support from the nigerian military, from the paramilitary, ministry of finance, Humanitarian Affairs and its agencies especially National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), North East Development Commission and others”, Zulum stated.

The governor maintained that one of the conditions for returning was to ensure adequate security in the localities, saying that government has engaged the military with a view to determining situation at the various locations that were provided for resettlement.

He, however, stressed that while the federal, state governments are doing their modest best to relocate the people to their communities, the most important thing was to engage them all the time.

According to him, his government had already involved the Humanitarian Affairs ministry, North East Development Commission and the Central Bank of Nigeria to offer support in the area of agricultural inputs and fertilizers so that the people can engage in their means of livelihood.

While speaking on the #EndSARS protests by youths demanding an end to police brutality and extra-judicial killings in the country, Zulum advised youths in the country to be cautious in the way they express their grievances.

“The whole Boko Haram saga started as a result of protests by some youths in Maiduguri against the use of helmet by motorcycle riders, you have seen the situation now.

Over one million people have been displaced and the most affected population are the vulnerable, the youths.

“Some of those that led the protests have left Borno state, they are either staying in Abuja or Lagos or abroad. we have to be very careful.

“So in Borno state, the entire situation did not take such dimension as that of Lagos because we told them to sit down and examine the situation and recall the past when the situation was so bad.

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“Now, there is emerging peace in Borno state and we don’t want anybody to disrupt the peace.

The youths are with us, we are taking very good care of them, palliatives we are distributed to them as at when due, we are giving them some certain financial support and I think the best way every Nigerian should seek for his or her right is through legitimate means, otherwise we are not going anywhere, peace is very important”, he added.