How we’ve decimated Boko Haram- COAS
The Chief of Army Staff, Lt. General Tukur Buratai, has said that the Nigerian Army has substantially curtailed the activities of the Islamic insurgents, Boko Haram in the North region of the country, saying that they had played a critical role in this connection.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of a 3-day training program tagged: “New Generation Warfare: The Dynamics of Information Management, held at the 81 Division, Officers’ Mess, Onikan, Lagos, Buratai said, apart from using the electronic and print media substantially to disseminate information about its operations to the people, the Army has also recognized the role of the New Media in this direction.
The Army Chief, who spoke on the topic: “The Utilisation of New Generation Warfare Tactics: Gains and Successes in the North-East Operation, the Chief of Military Intelligence, Major General Podje,” also said that the Army has a robust partnership with the press to frontally end insurgency in the country.
He said the Army was now partnering with some private radio stations in the North East to disseminate critical information about operations in the area and sought the continued cooperation of the media in achieving peace and security in the country.
The Acting Director, Army Public Relation, Col. Sani Usman said the Army welcomes cross-fertilization of ideas, between the media and the Army so as to rid the country of any threat to its people and its territorial integrity.
Senior Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina said although there was mutual distrust between the media and the Military in the past, the situation has fared better with the advent of democracy.
He said the military was not more patriotic than any other institutions, including the media, adding that both must partner for sustainable national development.
He called for “Controlled access of information, while urging the media not to see the military as a hindrance to its professional operations and reportage.
He said the military is a source of interest to the media, and both needed each other to further the general interest of Nigerians.
