UN Security Council lauds Operation LafiyaDole on professionalism

BY ABDULLAHI ISAH, MAIDUGURI

The United Nations Security Council has commended the Nigerian military in its counter insurgency war against Boko Haram in the North East.

The President, United Nations Security Council, Amb. Mathew Rycrort who made the commendation when he led the UN Security Council on an on the spot assessment of the Humanitarian crisis of the North-east on Sunday said the UN Security Council is committed to supporting the Nigerian Military in ending the Boko Haram crisis in Nigeria.

Ambassador Rycrort said that they are united and resolved to help Nigeria in overcoming its humanitarian crisis in the Lake Chad basin, as their respective countries will scale up their humanitarian assistance.

He said the crisis in the North-east will no longer be a neglected crisis, as the UN Security Council has assessed the situation on ground, describing it as one of the world’s worst humanitarian crisis in recent times.

While addressing the UN Security Council, the theater Commander Operation Lafiya Dole, Major General Lucky Irabor said the Nigerian Military has adopted a code of conduct and rule of engagement to ensure that the human rights of citizens are not violated, stressing that the Army has constituted court marshal for trying bad eggs in the military.

He said the military has decimated the capacity of Boko Haram insurgents in the country and that no Nigerian territory is presently under their occupation, adding that they don’t have capacity to launch coordinated and deadly attacks any more.

While at the Government House Maiduguri, Governor Kashim Shettima called on the UN Security Council to scale up their assistance towards resolving the humanitarian crisis in the North-east.

Shettima said his administration has accorded priority to the education sector, more especially girl-child education and gender empowerment, as the root cause of the Boko Haram insurgency is illiteracy, poverty and unemployment, adding that the Borno state government is investing heavily in agriculture and called on the United Nations and the international community to assist the Nigerian government.

The governor stated that in the past the international community had neglected the humanitarian crisis in the North-east but now commended UN agencies such as ICRC, World Food Program and others for scaling up their aid, pointing out that, like Oliver Twist, they are asking for more.

The Security Council delegation consisted of 14 UN permanent representatives from China, Japan, US, UK, Senegal among others.