The Defence Headquarters on Thursday challenged former militant leader Asari Dokubo to come to the battlefield and witness the capabilities of the military.
Dokubo had, on October 5, threatened to shoot down a military helicopter hovering around his residence, asserting that he could contain the Nigerian military.
In response to Dokubo’s claim that he could defeat the military, the Director of Defence Media Operations, Maj Gen Edward Buba, dared him to enter the battlefield and see whether he could indeed contend with the military.
Buba further vowed that the ex-militant leader would be neutralised if he showed up on the battlefield, and he called upon the relevant security agency to address the matter.
Buba stated, “Now, to comment that he can shoot down military helicopters is laughable, and I am tempted to laugh about that. We are in a democracy, and we are professional;
we cannot simply act on someone’s comments without due consideration, lest we be accused of being undemocratic.
“The military is not the only security agency or department in the country. Other security forces have a constitutional role to play in addressing these issues.
“I assure you that he does not possess that capability, but I will leave it to the appropriate security forces to handle the matter. Our mandate is to confront him on the battlefield and take him out. He should come to the battlefield and see whether we can react or not.”
Buba emphasised that the military’s primary focus is on terrorists operating in various theatres of operation.
He remarked, “Our enemy is the terrorists. While some may choose to label them differently depending on the region, in the northwest and northeast, some refer to them as bandits.
“I tell you, they are all terrorists. We must label them for what they are. Troops are making significant progress; as I mentioned, we prioritise targeting terrorist leadership, and we have successfully eliminated over 300 terrorist commanders in the last three quarters, not to mention their foot soldiers.
“Our aim is to diminish their fighting capabilities and to damage their military potential, which we have been achieving. As indicated in the brief you have just received, you can see the number of weapons and ammunition we have recovered.”
