Army needs media support to end insurgency, Buratai tells DailyTrust
NEWS DIGEST–There is need for the Nigerian Army and the media to partner and closely work together to totally defeat terrorism in the country, says Lieutenant General Tukur Yusuf Buratai, the Chief of Army Staff (COAS).
He said the support of members of the Fourth Estate will help boost the morale of troops and also end terrorism, together with other violent crimes across the country.
Buratai, added that it is also pertinent that the media houses, and their reporters eschew reporting stories about military operations inaccurately, and in a manner which is devoid of fact, accuracy and credibility.
He stressed that such unprofessional conducts contribute in emboldening insurgents and other criminal elements to continue perpetrating their heinous crimes, pointing out that ‘undue media publicity is the oxygen which makes insurgency to continue thriving, world over.”
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The COAS spoke on Tuesday at the Army Headquarters in Abuja, when he received a delegation of the top management staff of DailyTrust, who paid him a courtesy visit.
According to Lt. Gen. Buratai, the media is a key and relevant stakeholder in the counter-insurgency project, hence it should not provide the ‘oxygen’ needed for Boko Haram fighters and their collaborators to survive.
He also underscored the need for the media to help enlighten the general public about the ‘genuine’ intents and purposes behind some military exercises recently launched, assuring that officers and troops of the Army will continue to discharge their constitutional and fundamental duty of protecting the territorial integrity of the nation against internal threats and external aggression.
In a remark, Alh. Mannir Dan-Ali, the Chief Executive Officer/Editor-in-Chief of DailyTrust, extolled the leadership qualities of the Army Chief, while saluting the gallantry of troops deployed to the North-East and other restive parts of the country to restore peace and order.
He said their newspaper is willing to partner and support the Army’s counter-insurgency war.
