Nigeria’s Senate President, David Mark, on Tuesday said that the Federal Government should not negotiate with the Boko Haram insurgents for release of the over 200 abducted school girls from Chibok, Borno state about a month ago in exchange for some of their operatives detained by Government.
The leader of Boko Haram, Abubakar Shekau, had in a video message released on Monday and showing the abducted girls for the first time since their abduction, vowed that the girls would only be released if the Federal Government agrees to swap them for detained operatives of the group in various cells across the country.
According to a statement, Mark while reacting to Shekau's demands in Beijing, China, he told reporters that the Federal Government would never negotiate with the terrorists.
He insisted that negotiating with terrorists as proposed by Shekau over the abducted girls, would not help the nation but would rather give the insurgents room to wreck more havoc on both the country and its people without fulfilling the terms of agreement that may have been reached with them.
Mark said : "Nigeria will not negotiate with terrorists under any circumstance because you don't negotiate with criminals which Boko Haram insurgents are.
"We are going to bring the girls back safe and sound for their parents without any negotiation with Boko Haram as every effort towards that which cannot be disclosed in the public, is being made to rescue the girls."
The Senate President noted that at the beginning of the insurgency in 2010, the Federal Government did not realize that the Boko Haram, had links with international terrorist organizations.
He said the lack of adequate intelligence made the government's position then to be largely centered on dialogue believing the insurgents were largely Nigerians.
He said the Federal Government now has no option but to use its military strength to wipe out the insurgents especially with the ongoing collaboration with developed countries to fight the insurgents.
Mark said: "We didn't realize on time that they have international connections but now that we do, we are already mobilizing all the resources and weapons at our disposal along with needed expertise and intelligence sharing from other countries to frontally tackle the insurgents."
He disclosed that if the situation arises, he is prepared to be called up as military reserve to join in the war against terrorism.
He however urged Nigerians to cooperate with both the government and the security agencies in the struggle by giving out vital information at their disposal on the insurgents and their sponsors.
He added: "The cooperation the nation needs from Nigerians now is for every one of them having vital information on the insurgents and their sponsors in and outside the country, to make it available to government through its relevant security outfits in the general interest of all."
Mark assured the over 60,000 Chinese nationals living in Nigeria of their safety.
He said the Federal Government has put necessary measures in place to guarantee not only their safety but that of other nationals of other countries.
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