Mr Labaran Maku Minister of Information pleaded with the military not to interrupt democratic governance in the country, just as it gave assurance that the problem of insurgency, communal clashes among other challenges would soon be things of the past.
Labaran Maku, while handing over in Abuja, as Supervising Minister of Defence to the new minister, Lieutenant General Aliyu Gusau (rtd), told the military not to consider the utterances against 2015 as well as Boko Haram fight especially by the Borno State governor, Kashim Shetima, saying that “even the state governor has the misfortune of discretion.”
He stressed that the country was faced with serious challenges ranging from Boko Haram insurgency to the troubles about 2015 general elections, communal crisis between grazers and farmers amongst others, but assured that it would overcome them all.
The minister expressed regrets that while Boko Haram was orchestrating crisis in the country on one hand, the political class on the other hand, were also overheating the polity over the 2015 general elections thereby creating a situation of uncertainty.
He therefore urged the military to discountenace the inflamatory utterances by politicians on the present security and political challenges in the country, demanding their continuous loyalty to the system.
“We are already heading towards electoral situation and there have been a lot of utterance from within and outside the country. Mr President has assured that the 2015 elections will be even more free and fair than any other election.
“One great thing the armed forces will continue to do is to remain loyal to the constitution, Commander- In-Chief and the democratic system.” Warning that Nigeria had no future outside democracy, Maku said that if the military had not interrupted the democratic systems in the country, Nigeria would have been better off by today. Maku also warned that any military interruption of the present democratic system would only lead to crisis.
Stressing that it was normal in democracy for politicians to quarrel, he said that in India, the Prime Minister was even assassinated, but the Indians never interrupted democracy in that country.
“Politicians will continue to quarrel, the Armed Forces must remain loyal and not interrupt the system”, Maku pleaded. Having supervised the Defence for about five months, he said that he was in position to confirm that the Service Chiefs had done quite great jobs for maintaining the security in the country thus far. He pointed out that in spite of the huge efforts that the Service Chiefs were putting in on daily basis to curb insurgency, the persistence nature of the challenge in the North East part of the country was making people to have the impression that the military was doing nothing.
Labaran Maku said such was responsible for the wrong impression and comments by the Borno State governor, whom he alleged to have been going about to say that the military was doing nothing to stop Boko Haram in the state. Commending the Armed Forces for facing the challenge head on, he expressed the optimism that the country would win the fight on terror.
In his remark, the Defence minister, General Aliyu Gusau Muhammad, pointed out that the military had made remarkable achievements in some areas but could record improvements in others. He noted that “the challenges in the North East are daunting but surmountable. We must be prepared to be committed to our duties each time we move.
