Dapchi Abduction: What Service Chiefs discussed in Maiduguri

The Chief of Defence Staff, Gabriel Olonisakin, on Thursday, alongside other service chiefs, held a three-hour meeting with troops’ commanders over the search for the abducted Dapchi schoolgirls.

The meeting took place at the military Command and Control Centre at the MaiMalari Cantonment.

Defence Spokesperson, John Again, a Brigadier-General, speaking to journalists after the meeting said operational strategy for the search for the girls would no longer be discussed in the public, rather the military will only communicate successes recorded

Mr. Again said the service chiefs held meeting to review the entire counter-insurgency operations, including the search for the Dapchi schoolgirls.

“The Chief of Defence Staff and other service chiefs came into the Theatre Command to review the main operations, particularly the Operation to get back the Dapchi schoolgirls”, he said.

“The CDS is soliciting for the cooperation of the media and all stakeholders in this ongoing operations.

“To this end, he is asking for maturity in handling the media so that we don’t speculate. For instance there are some ongoing speculation that the military has employed the services of some fishermen and farmers.

“This speculation in the view of the Chief of Defence Staff, can jeopardise the operation and also endanger the lives of the girls as well as all those who are involved in the operations.

“While the military is soliciting for useful information from the well-meaning general public, the military has not singled out fishermen and farmers for this assailants; rather the military is asking for anybody that has useful information.

“What we will be doing henceforth is to limit the way we publicise the strategy used in the operations. Rather, we will communicate the successes of the operations,” he stated.