President Goodluck Jonathan on Wednesday
admitted that the country was currently passing through stress
orchestrated by the violence being perpetrated by members of the Boko
Haram sect.
He said that was why his administration had resolved to tackle the insurgency from different fronts.
Jonathan spoke while inaugurating a steering committee for the Safe Schools Initiative, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The committee, which is co-chaired by
the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, and a former British
Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, also has the likes of Aliko Dangote, Nduka
Obaigbena, as well as governors of Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states,
among others as members.
He said, “This country is passing
through stress within this period, caused by the excesses of the Boko
Haram sect and our government has been approaching it from different
fronts.
“We always insist that the defence or security does not end terror but we need to stop collateral damage on innocent people.
“For us to win the war, we need to look
at it holistically: economic issues, educational issues, religious
issues and socio-cultural issues, among others.
“At the federal level, we have the
Presidential Initiative on the North-East. They are looking at the
totality of what the Federal Government can do in collaboration with
stakeholders.”
The President said he had already
received a copy of the report of the North-East Economic Summit, and
that based on that report, his administration was looking at areas where
government would come in.
He said the Safe Schools Initiative was one of the areas, where his government was intervening.
He decried the high rate of school
dropout in some of the states, which he said, had risen to 70 per cent
in some states, saying that was not acceptable to his administration.
He said Brown pioneered the initiative with government to see how they could tap global fund for school security.
Jonathan said he would also set up a Victims Support Fund, to assist victims of terror attacks.
He said he would launch the fund on July 16.
The President said, “We are also coming
up with a package. Because we know that we need to intervene to cushion
the effect of Boko Haram. So many people have been killed; we have
widows and orphans. Properties have been destroyed, schools burnt.
“Government is also coming up with what
we call Victims Support Fund. We believe that government alone cannot
cushion the effect. We want to mobilise resources within and outside
Nigeria, just like we did during the flood of 2012.
“We are trying to get somebody that will
head that fund. We are looking at the 16th of this month to formally
launch the fund. Government will put something and individuals will do
too.”
Jonathan said the safety of Nigerian children and the security of their education must be paramount to all stakeholders.
He said tragic occurrences, like the kidnapping of the Chibok girls, must not happen again in the country.
“In line with this, we have designed
this initiative to enhance the safety of our children and the teachers
within the school environment and maintain the confidence of parents in
sending and keeping their children in school.
“Education and skill acquisition are key to the advancement of our country and ensuring the employment potential of our youths.
“In Borno State today, for example,
children, especially girls, are not going to school because of the risk
they face from terrorism and violence. This is not acceptable.
“I understand we can only make schools
safer within the context of a secured nation but I want to assure you
that my government will do everything possible to ensure safety of lives
and property nationwide. We have challenges; we are confronting it and
we will surely overcome,” he said.
Jonathan disclosed that in tackling
insurgency, his administration was deploying a three-point strategy that
focuses on security, seeking political solution as well as economic
solution through various economic empowerment and job creation programme
all directed at combating insecurity.
No comments:
Post a Comment