President: We Are Avoiding Civilian Casualties, Rights Abuses in Boko Haram Onslaught
President Goodluck Jonathan
President Goodluck Jonathan has said very careful steps are being taken by Nigerian troops to avoid collateral damage to the lives and properties of civilians, as the military intensifies its ongoing offensive against Islamist terror group Boko Haram.
The president disclosed this when he received the new South Korean Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Noh Kyu-Duk.
Jonathan, in a statement by his spokesman, Dr. Reuben Abati, explained that everything possible was being done by the military to avoid human rights violations in the theatre of operations in the northeastern states.
“We are sticking to international best practice in prosecuting the war against terrorism and doing our best to ensure that we don’t have cases of human rights abuses in the northeast.
“We are consistently monitoring the situation and have investigated previous reports of such abuses, which were mostly blown out of proportion for political reasons.
“Our military has a reputation for discipline and we have insisted on that discipline and control for the safety of civilians in the northeast.
“The purpose of the entire operation is to save our people from the brutal tyranny of Boko Haram, so we cannot tolerate human rights abuses or willfully impose further suffering on them,” the president said.
He told Kyu-Duk that Nigeria’s entire security architecture was being reviewed, restructured and strengthened to ensure greater safety for Nigerians and foreign workers in all parts of the country.
“We are inviting all our friends in the international community, particularly those that are more technologically advanced to complement our efforts to build a more secure and prosperous country in which our people and foreigners can live in peace and safety,” Jonathan added.
He charged Kyu-Duk and his Indonesian counterpart, Mr. Harry Purwanto, who was also at the Presidential Villa to present his letter of credence, to work for the strengthening of existing trade and economic relations between Nigeria and their countries.
The new ambassadors thanked Jonathan for receiving them and assured him of their resolve to promote stronger economic and cultural relations between their countries and Nigeria during their tenure in Abuja.
In another development, Jonathan has restated that he has no intention of removing the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Attahiru Jega, before the general election.
Speculations have been rife that the federal government intends to ask Jega to proceed on terminal leave in line with civil service rules.
This was magnified by senators of the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC), who warned last week of a plot to remove the INEC chairman, and a statement by the supervising Minister of Information, Chief Edem Duke, who said Jega’s appointment and/or removal was subject to rules applicable to civil servants.
But Jonathan, in an interview on Aljazeera Monday night, dispelled the rumours, saying Jega could not be removed if had not done anything wrong to warrant his removal.
“He cannot just be removed if he has not done something wrong,” the president said, adding that he had no plan to use the extant civil service rules on Jega by sending him on terminal leave before his tenure expires.
“Except somebody is insinuating that the chairman has done something wrong, you cannot change an officer, except the person has done something wrong.
“Government does not just wake up, whether at the federal or state level; the president or governor does not wake up and change somebody, especially INEC, a very sensitive body.
“So for me to change the INEC chairman, people, both Nigerians and non-Nigerians, would ask questions. You cannot just wake up and change INEC chairman. I have never discussed with any human being on earth about changing the INEC chairman,” he maintained.
The president also dispelled the perception that corruption has worsened under his leadership, stating that it is an overblown assessment with political undertones.
“Yes, people talk about corruption now because it has become a political issue and when you promote something to the level of politics, it is blown out of proportion.
“But this does not mean corruption does not exist. Yes, we have corruption cases, no doubt about that. Yes, we have cases of people stealing, no doubt about that. I always said call a thief a thief. I am not saying that in Nigeria we do not have these elements of corruption, or stealing,” he said.
Giving one instance of an issue which he felt had been politicised and blown out of proportion, he said: “If you start from my former CBN governor who said $49.8 billion had not been remitted to the government.
“$49.8 billion is a lot of money. What is the budget of this country for God’s sake? Our federal budget has been three point something trillion, that’s roughly on the average $18 to $20 billion a year.
“And you are saying we lost $49.8 billion. If we lose $49.8 billion, the federal and state governments will not pay salaries. I don’t know how he came by that figure.
“The next morning, he said it was $12 billion, the following morning he said it was $20 billion. Till today, I don’t know which figure to believe.
“The senate then set up a committee to investigate and they used a consultant and only found out that $2 billion was not properly balanced. They did not say anybody stole it, but just that it was not properly balanced.”
On the 2015 polls, Jonathan said he would ensure that there is no violence after the elections if he does not win. “It is not by default,” he said.
“The country is not my father’s estate. If I lose the election, I will go to my village,” he added.
In the interview, he also restated his commitment to defeating Boko Haram and denied mishandling the Boko Haram crisis as well as allegations that a recent escalation in military operations against the group was politically motivated.
Jonathan, in a statement by his spokesman, Dr. Reuben Abati, explained that everything possible was being done by the military to avoid human rights violations in the theatre of operations in the northeastern states.
“We are sticking to international best practice in prosecuting the war against terrorism and doing our best to ensure that we don’t have cases of human rights abuses in the northeast.
“We are consistently monitoring the situation and have investigated previous reports of such abuses, which were mostly blown out of proportion for political reasons.
“Our military has a reputation for discipline and we have insisted on that discipline and control for the safety of civilians in the northeast.
“The purpose of the entire operation is to save our people from the brutal tyranny of Boko Haram, so we cannot tolerate human rights abuses or willfully impose further suffering on them,” the president said.
He told Kyu-Duk that Nigeria’s entire security architecture was being reviewed, restructured and strengthened to ensure greater safety for Nigerians and foreign workers in all parts of the country.
“We are inviting all our friends in the international community, particularly those that are more technologically advanced to complement our efforts to build a more secure and prosperous country in which our people and foreigners can live in peace and safety,” Jonathan added.
He charged Kyu-Duk and his Indonesian counterpart, Mr. Harry Purwanto, who was also at the Presidential Villa to present his letter of credence, to work for the strengthening of existing trade and economic relations between Nigeria and their countries.
The new ambassadors thanked Jonathan for receiving them and assured him of their resolve to promote stronger economic and cultural relations between their countries and Nigeria during their tenure in Abuja.
In another development, Jonathan has restated that he has no intention of removing the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Attahiru Jega, before the general election.
Speculations have been rife that the federal government intends to ask Jega to proceed on terminal leave in line with civil service rules.
This was magnified by senators of the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC), who warned last week of a plot to remove the INEC chairman, and a statement by the supervising Minister of Information, Chief Edem Duke, who said Jega’s appointment and/or removal was subject to rules applicable to civil servants.
But Jonathan, in an interview on Aljazeera Monday night, dispelled the rumours, saying Jega could not be removed if had not done anything wrong to warrant his removal.
“He cannot just be removed if he has not done something wrong,” the president said, adding that he had no plan to use the extant civil service rules on Jega by sending him on terminal leave before his tenure expires.
“Except somebody is insinuating that the chairman has done something wrong, you cannot change an officer, except the person has done something wrong.
“Government does not just wake up, whether at the federal or state level; the president or governor does not wake up and change somebody, especially INEC, a very sensitive body.
“So for me to change the INEC chairman, people, both Nigerians and non-Nigerians, would ask questions. You cannot just wake up and change INEC chairman. I have never discussed with any human being on earth about changing the INEC chairman,” he maintained.
The president also dispelled the perception that corruption has worsened under his leadership, stating that it is an overblown assessment with political undertones.
“Yes, people talk about corruption now because it has become a political issue and when you promote something to the level of politics, it is blown out of proportion.
“But this does not mean corruption does not exist. Yes, we have corruption cases, no doubt about that. Yes, we have cases of people stealing, no doubt about that. I always said call a thief a thief. I am not saying that in Nigeria we do not have these elements of corruption, or stealing,” he said.
Giving one instance of an issue which he felt had been politicised and blown out of proportion, he said: “If you start from my former CBN governor who said $49.8 billion had not been remitted to the government.
“$49.8 billion is a lot of money. What is the budget of this country for God’s sake? Our federal budget has been three point something trillion, that’s roughly on the average $18 to $20 billion a year.
“And you are saying we lost $49.8 billion. If we lose $49.8 billion, the federal and state governments will not pay salaries. I don’t know how he came by that figure.
“The next morning, he said it was $12 billion, the following morning he said it was $20 billion. Till today, I don’t know which figure to believe.
“The senate then set up a committee to investigate and they used a consultant and only found out that $2 billion was not properly balanced. They did not say anybody stole it, but just that it was not properly balanced.”
On the 2015 polls, Jonathan said he would ensure that there is no violence after the elections if he does not win. “It is not by default,” he said.
“The country is not my father’s estate. If I lose the election, I will go to my village,” he added.
In the interview, he also restated his commitment to defeating Boko Haram and denied mishandling the Boko Haram crisis as well as allegations that a recent escalation in military operations against the group was politically motivated.
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