…no clue on Chibok Girls
…why Dasuki, Kanu won’t get bail
By Sadiq Umar, Abuja – President Muhammadu Buhari Wednesday addressed a wide range of issues confronting his 8months old government, including the latest conflict between the military and the Shiites Muslims in Zaria, Kaduna State.
Buhari who spoke today during his maiden media chat at the State House, Abuja said he was waiting for the outcome of the investigations being carried out by the Army and Kaduna State government on the clashes.
The President disclosed that he received a telephone call from the Iranian President, Hassan Rouhani, assuring that he will be fair to all in addressing the issue.
“To be fair to the both sides, we have to wait for the report of the inquiry.”
“I was in touch with the governor of Kaduna state and interestingly the president of Iran talked to me about it.
“I told him we have a system of investigation as a government. This happened in one city out of 36, and the governor visited the scene. As the head of the federal government, I have to wait for official report from the Kaduna State government from their investigations before I comment,” Buhari said.
However, the President reservation about the activities of the religious sect saying, “how can any group create a state within a state? I saw a clip in which some dissidents were virtually hitting the chest of Generals,”
He said people of Zaria equally expressed worry about the activities of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria and how they have suffered in their hands.
“I expect the Kaduna State government will bring the report on the inquiry because the crisis happened in its domain. There are all sorts of allegations. So, we just have to wait for the report.
“In any incident where lives and property were lost there is a standard way of doing things and people would be asked to come and give evidence.
The National Human Right Commission had also commenced investigations into the matter. It is not clear if the President would also be interested in its report.
On the missing Chibok girls, Buhari said there was no credible information on the whereabouts of over 200 girls kidnapped by Boko Haram in April 2014.
“I am working with Niger, Chad, Cameroon, and I assure you that the questions on Chibok girls are in our minds,” he said.
Adding: “There is no firm intelligence where those girls are physically are, and what condition they are in. They keep pushing them around, they are not keeping them in one place.”
Indicating that no negotiation had taken place for the release of the Chibok girls as reported in the media, the President said though the option is still open.
“We are still keeping our options open, that if a credible leadership of Boko Haram can be established and they tell us where those girls are, we are ready to negotiate with no preconditions.
“I could recall mentioning that perceived leadership of Boko Haram wanted to negotiate, but we insisted that bona fide Boko Haram leadership must be established before we can agree with them and on what terms would they release the girls.
“We want to be sure that they are complete, 209 I think, and that they are safe and sound. But what we know so far, by attacking some of the location in Sambisa forest, no Chibok girl has been recovered. They must have dispersed them all over the place.
“We are looking for credible Boko Haram leadership that would convince us that the girls are still alive. He admitted after a question on intelligence that there was “no credible information.”
On Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, who is facing charges of treasonable felony, Buhari expressed reservation about the question of bail for the British born Nigeria..
Kanu was earlier granted bail but was rearrested by the State Security Service (SSS), bu the President justified his government’s move on Wednesday saying he would not allow him to jump bail.
He said despite the fact that Kanu is carrying two international passports, British and Nigeria passports, “he did not use any of them to come into the country.”
He also expressed same position on the former National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki.
He said the two accused persons cannot be bail because of what he described as their “atrocities” against the country.
“If you see the atrocities these people committed against this country, we can’t allow them to jump bail,” he said.
On Dasuki, Buhari said he was just dishing instructions to the Central Bank to release money the way he liked.
“They would just say to Central Bank give so and so, 40 billion naira just like that; 40 billion.
He wondered why Dasuki should be allowed to “travel to London to see his doctor” as argued by his lawyers.
“What of the over two million people displaced, most of them orphans whose fathers have been killed, what type of government do you want to run? We cannot allow that,” Buhari quipped.
