Nasir El-Rufai, the governor of Kaduna State, has advocated for tough action against terrorists who are endangering people, including bombardment of their hideouts.
This is stated in a statement made available to journalists on Friday in Kaduna by Muyiwa Adekeye, the governor’s spokesman.
According to him, Mr El-Rufai hosted a live media programme in Hausa on Wednesday, where he responded to questions about the country’s deteriorating security situation.
His response included a reminder that he had been advocating for tough action against terrorists for at least five years.
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The governor stated that he briefed President Muhammadu Buhari on the gravity of the security situation and informed him that terrorists had threatened to kidnap both the President and himself.
According to the statement, as a digitally active governor with a significant social media presence, he was the first to draw Mr. President’s attention to the viral video that day.
“It is incumbent on him to share information with the President, without regard to any security or media reports that the President may receive from other sources.” The President had not yet seen the viral video.
He stated that the storylines in the media that this amounted to a failure by security agencies to brief Mr. President were not what the governor explicitly stated in the Hausa language interview.
“At all times, it is critical that the media exercise restraint, ensure contextual accuracy in reporting, and avoid issues that may arise from or be lost in translation.”
According to him, the media must not glorify terrorists or demonise officials tasked with containing and eliminating them through acts of commission or omission.
“Nigeria’s security challenges should not be politicised or used to mislead our people,” he said.
