El-Rufai and Security Agencies

Notes for File

About three weeks after Kaduna State Governor, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai’s revelation that the military knows the location of the bandits wreaking havoc in the state, but has refused to bomb their hideouts, nothing has been heard from the military high command as a counter.

The governor, who said he was frustrated and helpless, disclosed that the location of the terrorists was public knowledge, stressing that even the Department of State Services (DSS) usually monitors their telephone lines.

He stated: “We have enough intelligence for us to take action. The Air Force undertakes enough ISR (Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance), and the DSS has informants all over the place. We know what they (terrorists) are planning. We get the reports. The problem is for the agencies to take action. Don’t wait until they attack before you respond. The Army should go after their enclaves to wipe them out. Let the Air Force bomb them.

“Before, they were categorised as bandits and if you bombed them, you would have issues with human rights organisations and international criminal courts and so on. But, now that they have been declared terrorists by the court, they can be legally killed without any consequences from international human rights organisations.”

El-Rufai insisted that the camps and phone numbers of the terrorists were known by the military agencies, stressing that Kaduna State was currently in a state of war.

“We know where their camps are; we know where they are; the DSS have their phone numbers; they listen to them, and they give me the report. We know what they are planning. We shouldn’t be waiting for them to attack; why can’t we go after them?” he asked.

The governor said the bandit areas should be declared a war zone, adding that he was ready to allow a few innocent people to lose their lives in the process.

“We are in a state of war; this place should be declared a war zone. The Army, Air Force, and the police should go in there and kill them. Will there be innocent casualties? Yes! In every war situation, there are casualties,” he added.

Since the governor openly indicted the military, not only have they refused to respond, Nigerians have also not seen them swiftly moving into the state to decimate the terrorists in order to at least redeem their image.