Terrorism expert and former Congress for Progressive Change, CPC, gubernatorial candidate, Mr. Abayomi Mumuni, has expressed dissatisfaction over the way FG is handling the Boko Haram insurgency. He stated that the dreaded group will soon be above the law and even be franchised. Reacting to the incessant killings of innocent Nigerians by the group, Abayomi told Showbiz and More on Tuesday, November 18, 2014, that the government has allowed the once petite group to grow big. “Boko Haram is a petite terrorist group that can be curtailed. I am very sure they have no affiliation with Al-Qaeda, but their modus operandi is similar to the Taliban group. Unfortunately, we’ve allowed them to grow big, and if care is not taken, they’ll be franchised and once they go franchise, the consequences will be unbearable to everyone”. He also disclosed that he already knew that the proposed ceasefire arrangement between FG and Boko Haram was not real, noting that it is not easy for terrorists to surrender just like that when they haven’t got what they want. “You can only negotiate with terrorists when you are ready to accept their request, and everyone knows the mission of Boko Haram is to Islamize Nigeria and establish sharia. Do you think FG would accept that? That is why I didn’t believe the reports in the first instance before the group head, Abubakar Shekau, appeared in a new video where he denied negotiation with the government.” The Jagunmade of Lagos added that the ceasefire failed because FG didn’t contact the right people to negotiate with the group. “I still believe in negotiation. Boko Haram members are reachable. American government used the same approach with the Taliban, using terrorists to communicate with terrorists. They have their contacts. Government should continue to engage the right people who know the terrorists, instead of the wrong ones, who are just after their own selfish interest”, he noted.
However, if negotiation fails, Abayomi, who holds a Post Graduate Certificate in Intelligence and Terrorism Profiling from Henley-Putnam University, San-Jose, California, USA and Advanced Diploma in Forensic Science from Stratford Career Institute, Champlain, New York, USA, said the next option should be fire for fire. “Going by what Shekau said, the girls have been married off. What else are we waiting for? They have married our girls off, killings innocent people and taken over parts of Nigeria’s territory. It is high time FG used external force and put an end to the Boko Haram insurgency. But the question is, do we have the arsenal to fight the war? I don’t think so! The battle cannot be won if the Federal Government fails to hire experts and equip our soldiers”.