Military rescued 11,595 B’Haram captives under me –Buhari

May 28, 2016

Gbenga Lawal

President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday disclosed that the military had so far rescued 11,595 persons held captive by the Boko Haram sect between May 29, 2015 when he was inaugurated and February 2016.

He said since December 2015, the military had regained all territories hitherto occupied by the sect.

These were contained in a document tagged “Fact sheet on President Muhammadu Buhari’s first year in office” made available to journalists by the Office of the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity.

The document highlighted the achievements of the administration under categories such as security, anti-corruption war, economy, power, environment and judiciary among others.

The statement read in part, “The relocation of the Nigerian Military Command Centre to Maiduguri, since May 2015, contributed to the success in the fight against insurgency in the North Eastern part of the country.

“As of February 2016, the total number of persons rescued by the Nigerian troops during the ongoing operations in the North-East came to 11,595.

“Since December 2015, the well-motivated and rejuvenated Nigerian military have regained all Nigerian territories previously under Boko Haram control.”

According to the document, the present administration prioritised regional cooperation in the fight against Boko Haram insurgency and violent extremism, through the operations of the 8,500 strong Multi-National Joint Task Force in N’Djamena, the capital of Chad, currently headed by a Nigeria military general.

It added that Nigeria has provided $21m to the Task Force since June 2015 and is committed to an additional $79m, bringing the total of Nigeria’s commitment to the Task Force to $100m.

Another major stride of the administration, the statement stated, is the Trans National Organised Crime where the President reportedly got partnership with regional allies in the fight against the proliferation of Small Arms and Light Weapons.

On anti-corruption war, the statement said although the campaign was gaining ground with several high profile cases already in the courts, the administration is being guided by the rule of law in the prosecution of corruption cases.

It said Buhari enlisted the support of multilateral institutions like the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, security agencies, Western countries and other friendly nations to locate and repatriate stolen assets.

“In March 2016, the Federal Government and the Swiss Government signed a Letter of Intent on the Restitution of Illegally-Acquired Assets forfeited in Switzerland.

“Under the agreement, Switzerland will repatriate $321m illicitly acquired by the Gen. Sani Abacha family.

“In March 2016, the Presidential Committee set up to probe contracts awarded by the Office of the National Security Adviser from 2011 to 2015 announced the recovery of over N7bn from indicted companies and individuals,” the statement added.

On economy, the government said the implementation of the Treasury Single Account has provided greater visibility of government revenues and cash flows. It said between June 2015 and April 2016, the Federal Government’s TSA collection clocked N3trn.

“To further instill fiscal discipline, President Buhari directed the closure of all multiple accounts in Ministries, Departments and Agencies of government, thereby plugging loopholes for leakages with new technology.

“The opaque accounting structure of the NNPC has been reconstructed to be more transparent with the closure of more than 40 accounts.

“As a corporate entity, NNPC is now accountable and more transparent in operations, publishing its monthly financial reports.

“The President also resolved the lingering shadowy oil swap deals that had cost the country billions of dollars and left it at the mercy of a few rich Nigerians.

“To alleviate the suffering of Nigerians in September 2015, President Buhari directed the Central Bank of Nigeria to disburse N689.5bn as bailout to 27 states of the federation to pay salaries.

“To stimulate the economy and reduce poverty, in April, 2016, President Buhari approved deferment in the payment of the bailout as states were still reeling under the burden of the fall in commodity prices.

“Records of more than 34,000 ghost workers draining the nation’s resources were expunged from the Federal Civil Service, saving N2.29bn monthly,” it added.

On power, the government said it agreed to a 50 million Euro (about N11.15bn) loan agreement with the French government for capacity-building and upgrade of power training facilities in Nigeria.