Governor Babagana Zulum of Borno State has warned that Boko Haram menace will be “a child’s play” if the Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP) is allowed to grow. He gave the warning when he appeared at the weekly briefing organised by the Presidential Communication Team led by the President’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, at the State House, Abuja, on Thursday. “While the challenge of insecurity is being solved gradually, it is not yet over. I have said it times without number that in addition to what we are doing, there is a need for government to rethink and look into the possibility of hiring mercenaries.
“I have said it times without number, there’s nothing wrong. America, Britain many more countries that are stronger than Nigeria, used to seek support from outside. There’s nothing wrong because this problem has been compounded.
“And it’s not easy for us to solve the security challenges that we’re having now. While Nigeria is providing a lot of things, the federal government is buying equipment, there is the need for us to seek support from external agencies, to defeat these insurgents once and for all, before the matter reaches other parts of the nation.
“This is very important whether we like it or not, we have an existing gap that we need to fill and this gap by now cannot be filled without external support’’, Mr. Zulum said.
“This is an early warning signal. Nigerian Army has to restrategise and defeat ISWAP. ISWAP will be a threat to the entire nation. Because of the proximity of Sub-Saharan Africa, they are coming from Libya and resettling here,” he added.
Noting successes achieved so far in the war against insurgency in the North-East, Zulum said: “All I have said now, would never have been feasible without the support of the government. But notwithstanding all the contributions of the Federal Government, we still have some challenges.
“One, I said it before, a growing number of ISWAP in some parts of the state is a matter of great concern to everybody. Why? In the shores of the Lake Chad, again in southern Borno State. Luckily enough, I was told there was military deployment yesterday (Wednesday) to southern Borno State to fight the insurgents in Tudun Katarangwa.
“But I think this is the early warning signal. We shouldn’t allow ISWAP to grow. ISWAP are more sophisticated, more funded and they are more educated. And we shall do everything possible to defeat ISWAP, otherwise what Boko Haram did will be child’s play.
