FG says it will not oppose negotiation with boko haram

The Nigerian government has said that
it will not oppose negotiation “if the
Boko Haram terrorist group opt for it”.
However, the government said such
negotiation would not be made from a
position of weakness but that of
strength.
In a statement on Saturday, Mr Femi
Adesina, a spokesman for President
Muhammadu Buhari, pointed out that
most wars, however furious or vicious,
often ended around the negotiation
table.
The government expressed confidence
that it had put machinery in place to
tackle the insurgency in the nation’s
north-east and bring it to an end.
“The machinery put in place, and which
will be set in motion soon, can only
devastate and decapitate insurgency.
“It is multinational in nature, and
relief is on the way for Nigeria and her
neighbours.
“President Muhammadu Buhari is
resolute. He has battled and won
insurgency before, he is poised to win
again. It is a promise he made to
Nigerians, and he is a promise keeper,”
the statement read.
The government emphasised that no
decent government would oppose
negotiations if the insurgents want to
negotiate, citing the negotiation
between the American government and
Taliban in Afghanistan.
Meanwhile, President Buhari had
implored the nation’s military officers
to be mindful of their actions by taking
into cognisance , the religious and
ethnic sensitiveness of the country in
the fight against the Boko Haram
insurgents in the northeast, and other
criminal elements across Nigeria.
He made the call to officers of Senior
Course 37 during their graduation
ceremony on Friday at the Armed Forces
Command and Staff College (AFCSC),
Jaji, Kaduna State.
President Buhari, who was represented
by his Vice, Professor Yemi Osinbajo,
said that the Federal Government under
his leadership, would do everything
possible to equip the military and other
security forces to effectively dislodge
the Boko Haram insurgents in the
region.