TheCable

Mansur Dan-Ali, minister of defence, says over 4000 persons held hostage by the Boko Haram insurgents have been freed.

Dan-Ali said this on Thursday while speaking at a two-day retreat holding at the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS) in Plateau state.

The minister said more should be done to consolidate the efforts to sustain the peace and security currently enjoyed in the north-east.

He stated that the combined efforts of members of the armed forces had successfully degraded the Boko Haram insurgents, making it difficult for members to regroup and carry out organised attacks.

“More than 4,000 Boko Haram captives have been freed; the figure includes the 106 Chibok girls that were abducted in 2014,” Dan-Ali said.

“For more to be achieved, the military components of the ministry and the civilians must work hard, understand each other and have mutual respect and trust.”

Also speaking, Simon Lalong, governor of Plateau, said the relative peace enjoyed in the north-east was due to collaborations between the military and civilians.

He called for a better understanding between the military and civilians, saying that such unity was key to the effective discharge of constitutional duties of the security agencies.

On his part, Yakubu Dogara, speaker of the house of representatives, said wielding a gun should not make any superior over other people.

“Holding guns and ranks should not give anyone a sense of superiority over members of the society; it should be a humbling factor and be managed with a great sense of responsibility,” he said.