The United States has criticised the Federal Government for being too slow to adapt in response to Boko Haram's threat.
Pentagon's Principal Director for African Affairs, Alice Friend, and the US Acting Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, Robert Jackson, made the accusation in the testimony they provided to the Senate's Africa Subcommittee hearing.
Sixteen US Department of Defence personnel with medical, intelligence, counter-terrorism and communications expertise have already been assigned to boost government's efforts to rescue the abducted schoolgirls.
"In general, Nigeria has failed to mount an effective campaign against Boko Haram," Reuters quoted Friend as saying.
"The Department has been deeply concerned for some time by how much the government of Nigeria has struggled to keep pace with Boko Haram's growing capabilities," she added.
Friend,who also accused Nigerian security forces of being slow to adapt to the threat from the Boko Haram, said, "more troubling" was that they perpetrated atrocities during operations against insurgents.
Going by the atrocities, she explained, U.S. human rights law would bar providing assistance to them.
"Our intent is to support Nigerian-led efforts to recover the girls and help catalyse greater efforts to secure the Nigerian population from the menace of Boko Haram," Friend said.
She added that Pentagon and the Department of State were developing a "regional response" to Boko Haram to improve border security along Nigeria's frontiers with Chad, Niger and Cameroon.
The intention, according to her, is to detect and respond to the movement of Boko Haram members between Nigeria and its neighbours.
On his part, Jackson, in his prepared testimony, said that Washington had been urging Nigeria to reform its approach to Boko Haram.
"When soldiers destroy towns, kill civilians and detain innocent people with impunity, mistrust takes root," he stated.
The State Department spokesperson, Jen Psaki, had earlier cautioned the Federal Government against expecting quick results from the surveillance flights over the North-East in search for the abducted girls.
A report by a US website, military.com, quoted Psaki as saying that the security personnel had flown many surveillance flights over Sambisa forest where the girls are believed to be held.
Psaki added that the US was pressing for the United Nations Security Council's sanctions on Boko Haram.
He said, "US officials have cautioned against expecting quick results from the surveillance flights.
"The initial search area includes the Sambisa forest and is about the size of New England.
"We've provided commercial satellite imagery and are flying manned intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance aircraft over Nigeria with the government's permission.
"We're also working closely with international partners on the ground broadly about the entire effort, including with the UK and France. In New York, we're continuing to press for additional multilateral action, including UN Security Council sanctions on Boko Haram.
"As you know, of course, this is a difficult mission, and we're looking for the girls in an area roughly the size of New England. So we continue to work with the team on the ground on that effort."
UN to assist kidnapped girls' families
Meanwhile, the UN has expressed its commitment to the release of the abducted girls and pledged assistance to their families.
The Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for West Africa, Said Djinnit, said this at a news conference in Abuja on Thursday.
He said the assistance would include response to emergency needs both in food and non-food items and early recovery support through promotion of alternative livelihood .
He said, "The UN is committed to do its utmost within its capacity to assist the authorities of Nigeria in their efforts towards the release of the schoolgirls.
"As part of its assistance , the UN has initiated the preparation of an integrated support package that includes their release , in particular with psycho-social counselling and facilitation of their reintegration in families and communities."
Djinnit also expressed concern over the deteriorating humanitarian situation in the North-East, including the condition of displaced persons.
He therefore offered the support of the UN to the Federal Government and the National Emergency Management Agency in reinforcing their capacity especially through enhanced coordination.
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When Nigerians say we have no government (state or federal), only thieving politicians that we have, some of us use ethnic sentiments to say the opposite. See the president visiting Chibok a month after this children abduction! A clear sign of insensitivity to the citizenry's plight. The president, it was reported went dancing and rallying support for his 2015 ambitions while girls and travelers were abducted and blown to pieces the previous day. Our soldiers are not well remunerated, have no fighting armory to contain BH, even that huge sums of money is voted and allocated for security, meanwhile we have about 10 well armed soldiers and police officers assigned to watch over politicians and their families. The BH problem, unpopular as it were, has only come to reveal how poor our security and defense system is and all these oil down to CORRUPTION at all levels in government institutions.
ReplyDeleteYany, you Northerners are the worst thing that happened to our nation. you do not give anything to the country and the only ones that are coming from the south, you want it to be wasted only on fighting your BH.
DeleteOur security agencies are useless. They kill the people they are suppose to protect.
ReplyDeleteNa true o.
ReplyDelete"Our intent is to support Nigerian-led efforts to recover the girls and help catalyse greater efforts to secure the Nigerian population from the menace of Boko Haram," Friend said.
ReplyDeleteWhat is the purpose of a government that can not take care of its citizens, and relies on another country to do its job for it?
Most Nigerians provide their own health care, education for their children, water, electric power supply, private security at home and in the neighbourhood, etc, etc. Now, the government can NOT secure the, our country!!! It now seems that the friend that suggested OURSOURCING governance of Nigeria to a foreign, European or American country, the way AMCON manages failed financial institutions is right. Perhaps this is the time to start drawing up the Service Level Agreement (SLA).
Our president sit down like mumu, and Obama is doing his work for him. God go judge.
ReplyDeleteThere's no mumu president here, do you think it is easy to by cut all these political godfathers we have in our government? The president has done his best. Its better let him sit down and give the US the authority to ransack this our democracy. Nigeria must be best. I say go ahead and put this country in order.
ReplyDeleteThe number 1 job in Nigeria is not meant to be easy. Pres Jonathan should sit up n do the job he is still seeking election for.
DeleteWhen the Ibos wanted a way out of this menace they were killed in millions. Now those who joined hands to do that genocide are among those looking for a way out of this arrangeee called NIGERIA 47 years after. God will judge them all.
ReplyDeleteYour papa na mumu,you have not seen anything yet,you lots want to role us for ever,thats why you recruite Boko Haram to course confussion in the country,the northern leaders who are making the country ungovernable by sponsoring Boko Haram,where are they?you all are ripping what you sow,Boko Haram or not,GEJ will be president come 2015,STUPID ABOKIs“EWU AUSA”
ReplyDeletedont be so ignorant and tribalistic.... if u lack wat to say simply shut up and go play ten..ten.. or somtin...!!!
DeleteNo mind Dem, even dog better pas, meanwhile all dis boko commenting here b warn. Or shut up ur dirty mouths, non of u can support peace or giv meaningful ideas, all u know is ur sharia law and killings..
ReplyDeletewill it not be better for the citizen of this country if we are colonized again, has our political leaders have noting to offer the great pple of this country only to loot our resources for their personal gain. May God help us o.
ReplyDeleteThe whole world have seen that, our president is incompetent. He has revealed his weak security agency to the world. If we can not tackle the internal insurgents, how do you expect us to tackle external insurgents. Our president is totally incompetent.
ReplyDeleteHow can some people be so delusional and keep saying "the president is trying his best. we shld leave him" when his best is simply not good enough. Okay for all those supporting GEJ I pray that the almighty God will ensure that your families are led the same way GEJ is leading Nigeria right now IJN. If you who support him can't say amen to that then u are a hypocrite
ReplyDeleteNice 1,@anonymous:10:37PM
ReplyDeleteonuoha, u sound a bit unresonable,if gej with all the security agencies at his disposal is not brave enough to tackle an internal crisis until a foreign country is invited to handle the situation,then i see no reason keeping such a “BIG FOOL“ as a leader. Tarauni!
ReplyDeleteonuoha, u sound a bit unresonable,if gej with all the security agencies at his disposal is not brave enough to tackle an internal crisis until a foreign country is invited to handle the situation,then i see no reason keeping such a “BIG FOOL“ as a leader. Tarauni!
ReplyDelete