Frustrated by worsening insecurity, amid wide criticism of government’s inability to protect the citizenry, Minister of Defence, Maj-Gen Bashir Magashi (rtd), yesterday, called for God’s intervention in the fight against insurgents and other criminal elements in the country.
The resort to divine intervention came on the heels of reported military air strikes in the North-east, which were said to have routed scores of terrorists.
The terrorists had, allegedly, fired mortar bombs at civilian targets in Gujba Local Government Area of Yobe State, recently. That was as the security situation in the country continued to deteriorate, with armed extremists striking at will, kidnapping many, and killing scores.
In his Easter message, Magashi called for religious harmony in the country, and prayed for God’s intervention to give the armed forces victory in their various campaigns against security threats across the country. He assured Nigerians of the military’s commitment to defending the sovereignty of the country.
Magashi said the Easter prayer should also focus on “remembering members of the armed forces presently engaged in various campaigns, for God to grant them total victory over all threats to national peace.” He prayed that this year’s Easter celebration “will usher in the desired peace and prosperity as well as a complete turnaround for the Nigerian Armed Forces to clear the doubts of cynics and return sanity to the dark spots in the country.
“The celebration of Easter, which coincides with fasting in the holy month of Ramadan by Muslims, is not a mere coincide, it underscores the need for religious harmony as well as portends spirituality and specialty of this auspicious times of festivities,” the minister stated.
