The president said this during his one-day working visit to Maiduguri, the Borno State capital, on Thursday. He said expansion of educational facilities in the state was the best response to Boko Haram’s actions to stifle education, especially that of the girl-child.
Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari says education is a wise response to counter Boko Haram insurgency.
The president said this during his one-day working visit to Maiduguri, the Borno State capital, on Thursday.
He said expansion of educational facilities in the state was the best response to Boko Haram’s actions to stifle education, especially that of the girl-child.
“This is a wise response to Boko Haram terrorism. Education plays a significant and remedial role in the efforts to provide equal opportunity and achieve a higher standard of living for citizens,” he said.
Buhari assured Governor Kashim Shettima and Borno indigenes that his administration is still focused on recovering the abducted Chibok and Dapchi school girls.
“We will not give up. As a President, Nigerian and parent, I share in the agony of parents whose children have been abducted. We will do all that can be done to reunite them with their families,” he said.
The president commended the Borno State government for investment in housing and education, noting that the focus on education by the state government is imperative, due to the peculiar security challenge posed by Boko Haram ideologues. He said the insurgents’ ideology was targeted against education, especially for the girl-child.
In his remarks, Kashim Shettima, Governor of Borno State, expressed appreciation to the present administration in addressing insecurity.
Shettima said the state was confronted with poverty, environmental challenges and lack of access to education, even before insurgency broke out. He appealed to the government to convert the state polytechnic and college of education to federal institutions.
Alhaji Abubakar Garba El-Kanemi, the Shehu of Borno, lauded Buhari’s “respect for traditional institution", and urged the President to give more support to the military to accelerate the operation against the insurgents particularly at the Lake Chad region.
“With our collective prayers and commitment, ongoing operations at the shores of Lake Chad would be addressed soon,” he said.
He promised that the traditional leaders in the state would provide information on any Boko Haram threats.
Buhari commissioned some projects in the state, including a mega school, Borno Industrial Hub and a housing estate.