THE Boko Haram insurgency has led to the loss of 100,000 lives and displacement of over two million persons, Chief of Defense Staff (CDS) Lucky Irabor disclosed on Tuesday.
The CDS, who spoke at the closing ceremony of the 2022 Ministerial Performance Review Retreat in Abuja, also disclosed that the insurgency has led to the loss of $9 billion (N3.24 trillion) in damages.
The defense chief however said the insurgents are now restricted to a corner of the territory they previously inhabited.
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But he also noted that they have made some inroads into the North-West.
Irabor added that the Armed Forces of Nigeria (AFN) received N2.5 trillion in seven years in budgetary provision. According to him, the military have been able to “tremendously” increase internal security operations.
However, he regretted that the amount received is just 35 per cent of the military’s requirements and below 0.5 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
While speaking on operations in the Niger Delta, he said militancy has transmuted to crude oil theft, noting the gaps exist in the National Security Strategy, which he said can be overcome through the initiative of the political leadership, military operations and the attitude of the population.
The ICIR reported that over 40 per cent of teachers in the North-East lost their lives as a result of the Boko Haram insurgency.
Managing Director of the North-East Development Commission (NEDC) Mohammed Alkali, who made the revelation, said teachers in the zone are among the primary target of the terrorists.
“The scarcest product now, not only in Nigeria but elsewhere, is teachers. In the North-East, over 40-50 per cent of teachers have either been killed or something has happened to them because of the insurgency and this so called Boko Haram and they’re the primary target of those people.
“Most of them have been killed or something must have happened to them,” Alkali said at the 50th session of the State House Briefing organised by the Presidential Communications Team at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
Nurudeen Akewushola is an investigative reporter and fact-checker with The ICIR. He believes courageous in-depth investigative reporting is the key to social justice, accountability and good governance in society. You can reach him via nyahaya@icirnigeria.org and @NurudeenAkewus1 on Twitter.