Chief of Army Staff, Liutenant-General Azubuike Ihejirika

Boko Haram: Army establishes quick response group.

The Nigerian Army has established a Quick Response Group to increase its capacity to deal with the threat posed by the Boko Haram Sect.
Chief of Army Staff, Liutenant-General Azubuike Ihejirika, announced this in Abuja on the occasion of a two-day security awareness workshop organised by the Nigerian Army.
He explained that the group, which would soon begin operation, would complement the efforts of the various task forces and internal security outfits.
``The unpredictable and random nature of terrorist acts make it difficult for security forces to protect all potential victims and targets, since they are faceless and have an unlimited number of targets.
``The adoption of suicide bombing tactics is a clear indication that the Boko Haram sect has no value for human life and the people they claim to represent.
``It, therefore, behoves on us to continue to devise new methods and improve on current ones in the fight against terrorism and other threats to security,'' Ihejirika said.
He noted that in many instances, the response by troops at the onset had not been as expected, owing to lack of requisite training since threats to security were dynamic.
The chief of Army staff said there was need to continue to evolve new methods of curtailing such challenges.
He said it was in realisation of the importance of the mass media that the Army Public Relations department was embarking on public enlightenment on security, to create awareness and sensitise its personnel.
``I urge participants to avail themselves of the opportunity provided by the workshop to increase their awareness of current threats and how to combat them.''
In his address of welcome, Major-General Ahmed Jibrin, Director of Military Intelligence, said the timing of the workshop was to emphasise the significance of security awareness in the face of persistent terrorist attacks.
``It is also to emphaise the challenges the Army and other security agencies would face in the coming year,’’ he added.
Jibrin said the purpose of the workshop was to equip the personnel with the necessary tools to enable them to be more security conscious and to detect threats to security and professionally deal with them.
``The workshop will enable participants to understand the tools and techniques used by terrorists to carry out attacks, notably the use of Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs).
``It will also enable participants to know how to respond to suspicious situations and conditions, and educate others on how to respond to threats,'' he said.