ABUJA – The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has urged security forces in the country to liberate and recover territories occupied by insurgents in Adamawa State.
The call is contained in a statement signed by the NLC General Secretary, Dr Peter Ozo-Eson, on Monday in Abuja.
The statement quoted Ozo-Eson as saying the NLC was alarmed by the rate at which the nation was losing grounds in the war against the Boko Haram insurgents.
He said “we stand by our security forces in this trying times in their engagement with Boko Haram insurgents.
“We believe in their capacity and resolve to get done the job of containing the insurgents.
“We acknowledge that this is not a regular war. We appreciate other challenges of our security forces too, among which are logistics and numbers.”
The NLC general secretary said the Congress was worried by the loss of some areas by troops that were supposed to be the pride of the nation, to insurgents.
The labour official said “our soldiers swore to an oath to maintain the territorial integrity and defend the sovereignty of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“Today, that sanctity is being violated and the land is being desecrated and the blood of the innocent freely flowing.’’
Ozo-Eson said the NLC was concerned about the preparedness of the country and its capacity to fight, adding that “we are worried about our vulnerability.’’
He noted that those at the Nigeria Labour Congress were hurt and pained by what they were witnessing.
He said “we are saddened and petrified by what seems to be the unravelling of a dark prophecy.
“While our forces are retreating from the Boko Haram in various battle fronts, the sect has opened a new offensive.
“In our estimation, this makes more difficult the task of reclaiming the lost territories, yet, our forces must go forth with a single-minded devotion.
“We want to see them reclaim their honour and dignity. But beside this, they signed a pact with the Nigerian people to defend them with their blood.
“That was why citizens paid tax, made sacrifices, as well as surrendered their right to bear arms.
“At this point in time, however, we at the Congress still believe that the setbacks are temporary and remediable.’’
The NLC official urged the Federal Government to avail the security forces all that they required to execute the war.
The NLC also urged communities in the conflict areas to build synergy with security forces, as the issue was no longer an internal security issue.
“Nigeria is at war. The body language and attitude of our leaders must show this.
“Let us all rise with one accord and fight Boko Haram. We can beat them.’’ (NAN)
