12th March, 2015
The Presidential Campaign Organisation of All Progressives Congress (APC), on Thursday applauded the Armed Forces recent victories in the fight against Boko Haram terrorists.
Addressing newsmen in Abuja, the Director of Media and Publicity of the organisation, Malam Garba Shehu, said the achievement was commendable.
Shehu stated that nobody could pretend to be ignorant of the huge progress that the military had made in the counter-insurgency war in the north eastern part of the country.
“The Armed Forces, in collaboration with a multinational force made up of armies of neighbouring African countries, have recorded a number of significant victories in the fight against Boko Haram.
“About 36 territories formerly in control of the insurgents have been taken back over the past few weeks. This is commendable. We congratulate our armed forces,” he said.
Shehu, however, wondered “why it took the Federal Government this long to apply the current level of force against the insurgents.”
He said the government left the issue to fester for too long, resulting in the deaths of hundreds of lives and displacement of thousands of persons in the north east.
Shehu also queried the 89 per cent reduction in the 2015 budget of the Federal Ministry of Works.
It will be recalled that the Minister of Works, Mr Mike Onolememen, disclosed the reduction when he appeared before the Senate Committee on Works to defend the proposal on Monday.
Onolememen had said that the Ministry of Finance slashed the N100 billion proposed by his ministry for 2015 to N11billion.
Shehu said: “who were the intended recipients of the unnecessary, extra 89 per cent? Into whose pockets were the superfluous millions intended?