By Chuks Oyema-Aziken
The North-East Elders Forum has welcome recent statement credited to the United Nations that there appear to be more glimmer of hope for things to return to normal in a couple of years in region.
UN Assistant Secretary-General, Ahunna Eziakonwa, recently said remarkable progress had been recorded in the region.
The forum in a press release on Thursday said the UN observation came at a time President Muhammadu Buhari lauded the exploits of the Nigerian Armed Forces in maintaining peace, unity and stability in the country.
President of the Forum, Adamu Liman said President Buhari at the 2022 Armed Forces Remembrance Day emblem appeal launch urged Nigerians to celebrate the military as the pride of the country.
According to the President, “The exploits of our Armed Forces to maintain peace as well as their disposition to the unity of Nigeria have contributed in no small measure to our stability.
”We must therefore celebrate them as the pride of our country. Our faith in our Armed Forces remains unshaken and as a government we will do all within our powers to ensure that our Armed Forces are motivated to perform optimally.
”They have time and again demonstrated unparalleled patriotism, courage, loyalty and commitment as they grapple with the daunting challenges of defending Nigeria’s territorial integrity.”
President Buhari said the Nigerian Armed Forces have effectively applied themselves to countering all the attempts by the nation’s enemies to disturb the peace, noting that places that were hitherto inaccessible and deserted have now been occupied by citizens who have returned to their normal homes.
He declared that the renewed onslaught on bandits in the Northwest has resulted in the military daily receiving insurgents who are voluntarily laying down their arms.
”We are not going to be satisfied until peace is finally restored to every inch of our land,” he declared.
The North-East Elders said the progress as noted by the UN and President Buhari could not have been possible without the determined efforts of the Armed Forces of Nigeria under the leadership of Gen. LEO Irabor.
The elders said the sacrifices of the military in the region is unquantifiable in terms of human resources and materials.
They therefore appealed to the residents of the region to support all efforts by the AFN to quickly resolve the crisis for the people to return to their normal life.
