Terrorism: Nigerian military capable of wining war – Obanikoro

The Minister of State for Defence, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, on Monday in Abuja, expressed confidence in the ability of the Nigerian military to win the war against Boko Haram.

Obanikoro gave the assurance when a delegation from the Royal College of Defence Studies, Britain, paid him a courtesy visit.

“I can beat my chest anywhere in the world to say we have some of the finest military men and women in uniform.

“So, with that kind of satisfaction, I am not worried about our capacity to prosecute this war.

“In a crisis situation, all these western media that are writing negative things about us always queue behind their own governments.

“Our media should take a cue from that, this is not Jonathan’s war, it is not a Federal Government war, it is a Nigerian war, all of us must stand up to be players and be counted.”

The minister said that whenever there was crisis such as the insurgency going on in Nigeria, all manners of things would be aired by foreign media.

He added that the foreign media were writing false reports about the Nigerian military, adding that the government should not lose focus in its fight against terrorism.

Obanikoro, who condemned the killings by Boko Haram members, said the act showed how callous the group was, stressing that “the war is not about anyone, but about all of us in Nigeria.”

The defence minister then commended the delegation for the visit, saying it was an indication that people had confidence in the government.

He also commended the British and the US governments for assisting Nigeria to resolve the current security challenge facing the country.

Head of the delegation, Maj.-Gen. Porter Simon, told the minister that the team was in the country to visit some military formations as part of their study tour.

He said the team was made up of 16 officers drawn from nine different countries around the world.