President Muhammadu Buhari has done more than what was expected of him to do in order to rescue the Abuja-Kaduna train attack victims who were kidnapped four months ago, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Malam Garba Shehu, said.
Shehu was reacting to a shocking video released by the terrorists on Sunday, in which the victims were seen being viciously whipped by their captors.
New Citizen reports that at least 40 of the victims still remain in the clutches of the kidnappers.
In a statement, Shehu said the security forces were not clueless, though they would not display their plans in the media.
He said: “Terrorist activity using propaganda and the use of violence to force governments to accept or submit to political demands is not new all over world.”
According to Shehu, the president “has done all, and even more than what is expected of him as Commander-in-Chief by way of morale, material and equipment support to the military and expects nothing short of good results in the immediate.”
The statement reads in full: “The country’s security and defence forces are not clueless or helpless. They have their plans and ways of doing things, which they will not display in the media.
“The dilemmas in dealing with the specific case of train terrorists are manifold: punitive action like the popular call for carpet bombing of the known locations may assuage the desire of an angry public for revenge, but what about the hostages? They have committed no offence. All they did was to board a train.
“It suffices to say that the security forces are not relenting. They are acutely aware of their duties, responsibilities and what the nation expects of them. Whenever they embark upon those actions, they expect that the public should provide them with the needed support.
“Terrorism is a global scourge that must be fought by all actors – the military, the civilian population and the communication service providers. This is the only way safe havens of terrorists are eliminated in every part of the world.
“To help the nation against ongoing situation, the media must increase their support for the fight against the exploitation of the internet and social media for terrorist purposes.
“The Presidency, in the meantime, wishes to reassure the public that the president has done all, and even more than what is expected of him as Commander-in-Chief by way of morale, material and equipment support to the military and expects nothing short of good results in the immediate.”
In the video, the terrorists were seen flogging the victims.
They separated the women from the men and whipped the men thoroughly.
Afterwards, they took turns to issue more threats, including the boast that they would even kidnap President Buhari and Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai, among others.
One of the the terrorists, who said he was one of the Kuje Prison escapees, revealed his willingness to continue with their criminal activities along with others.
