Senator Ndume Urges Tinubu to Hire Military Contractors Against Boko Haram

Nigerian Senate Chief Whip, Senator Ali Ndume, has urged President Bola Tinubu to hire military contractors in the effort to end Boko Haram terrorists in the northeastern Borno State.

Ndume, who represents Borno South Constituency under the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC) party, made the demand after media reports showed terrorists affiliated with Boko Haram were involved in an attack at Gwoza LGA of Borno, killing five civilians and abducted fifteen farmers, including women.

Ndume’s demand, as disclosed on Wednesday, opined that the Nigerian military and Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF) founded in 2013 at Maiduguri to assist the military against Boko Haram are not well equipped to neutralise the remaining insurgents in the region.

He, however, commended the effort of the military and the CJTF yet maintained the opinion that hiring mercenaries would help the government increase the number of soldiers in the country to a million.

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Ndume further stated,

All across the world, governments hire the services of military contractors to engage in certain places. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu can consider this as a short measure.

These contractors will come with their equipment and military hardware. In a very short time, they’ll eliminate those Boko Haram terrorists. The contractors can also be used to eliminate those bandits operating in the North West, he added.

Over a period, the federal government can now recruit youths to join the military and raise the number to at least one million. But in the interim, I think the President should consider this option of hiring military contractors, Ndume reiterated.

Meanwhile, Nigeria’s current military firepower is estimated at 0.1% of its fast-growing 230 million population, with 280,000 personnel comprising active military and paramilitary.

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Mayowa Durosinmi

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Mayowa Durosinmi is a Nigerian investigative reporter for West Africa Weekly with reports focusing on politics, human rights, security and health in West Africa and the Sahel region.

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