The Presidency yesterday confirmed that the location of the abducted Chibok School girls by the dreaded Boko Haram terrorists group has been discovered. Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs, Dr. Doyin Okupe made the confirmation in a special interview with the Cable News Network, (CNN).
Okupe’s confirmation corroborated the revelation by the Chief of Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh, who announced last week that the Nigerian military has discovered the where about of the Chibok school girls.
This came on the heels of reports that the Americans who are providing air surveillance and logistics support were angered by the revelation by the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) .One official claimed that American anger stemmed from the fact that they would prefer to take the credit for the location of the girls ,and not the Nigerian military.
Just like Okupe said in the interview with CNN, a competent source within the presidency debunked the rumour which made its way to one of the national newspapers that President Goodluck Jonathan was angry with the CDS, Air Chief Marshall Badeh over his revelation to the effect that the Nigerian military ‘’discovered the where about’’ of the Chibok school girls which allegedly angered the Americans.
The source further said that the President was not ‘unmindful of the effect of the positive development on the morale of the Nigerian military with the headway.’
He said: ‘’If the Americans had made the breakthrough, that would have been the end of the Nigerian military and the President as the Commander-in-Chief, knows that at all times he must show and have confidence in the capacity and competence of his troops.’’
According to the source, the administration has been battling all kinds of dangerous and unfounded rumours aimed at discrediting and creating confusion within the rank and file of the military.
“Last week there was a report of a second mutiny in the 7th Division of the Nigerian Army, Maiduguri. It took vigorous counter(efforts) before those behind the falsehood gave up.
“The President is aware that the CDS as the number one military officer owed it to the officers and men of the Nigerian Armed Forces to defend their professionalism, which of late has been subjected to serious questioning.
‘’Like you know there has been doubts about the competence of the Nigerian Armed Forces and unproven allegations of corruption by a section of the Nigerian public and countries like the United States, so the CDS had to do what he did, without giving away anything,” he said.
An official recalled that the United States of America has since the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo been working to establish some ‘’kind’’ of foothold in the Nigerian military during which former Chief of Army Staff Lt. General Victor Malu waged a war against the move, a development that infuriated the Americans.
President Jonathan and the military high command were ‘’compelled’’ into accepting the assistance of some foreign nations, with a view to reducing the barrage of criticisms against the government over the delay in the release of the abducted Chibok school girls,one source claimed.
