Sen. Ndume urges security agencies to collaborate with Northeast communities

chika ebuzor

July 5, 2018 6:18 PM

Ndume, who represents Borno South Senatorial District in the National Assembly, made the call at a forum in Abuja.

A member of the National Assembly, Sen. Ali Ndume, has urged security agencies in the country to collaborate with communities in the Northeast to gather the intelligence needed to tackle insurgency.

Ndume, who represents Borno South Senatorial District in the National Assembly, made the call at a News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) Forum in Abuja.

“The security agencies in this country should collaborate with the various small small communities to gather intelligence in order to get to where they are actually manufacturing or assembling or getting the source for these explosive devices that they use for suicide bombing."

And then also I think it boils down to more of intelligence gathering and taking the fight to the two remaining key black spots.

“Everybody in Borno State knows that the major black spot of Boko Haram is Sambisa and the Lake Chad Basin fringes.’’

Ndume expressed dismay that many people were yet to understand the gravity of the humanitarian crisis that people in the Northeast were experiencing.

“Many people underrate and underestimate the humanitarian crisis in the Northeast.

“People don’t know and are underestimating the level of destruction of infrastructure and the ecosystem in the area.

“There are many children that have been out of school in Borno for the nine years that they were not able to go to school.

“Many children don’t know where their parents are.

“The institution of government is not working; so since I’m here to represent my people, I should just keep quite and concentrate?.”

The lawmaker, however, said that the action of government in the fight against insurgency was commendable, adding: “but we are not there yet.

“We as citizens, are expecting the return of the peace that we had known before,” Ndume said.

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On the grants given to Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), Ndume said: “I am on the financial tracking system of the US.

“Their international development partners have contributed 740 million dollars; if you convert that to naira, it translates to 280 billion naira or more.

“Out of the 740 million dollars, they have spent close to 80 percent on overheads and it is only 20 per cent that goes to the people.”

He said it was regrettable that the 75 non-governmental organisations operating in Borno lacked synergy.

“It is not that they are not doing anything at all; but when you look at the money – 740 million dollars – if you decide to give the displaced persons conditional cash transfer, they would find a way to settle down.”

chika ebuzor