Borno murder: My comment was to avoid future occurrence, says Garba Shehu

Presidential spokesman, Garba Shehu, says his comment that the 43 farmers killed in Borno State did not get military clearance to visit their farms was a response to a question on security operations in the North-East.

Suspected Boko Haram members Saturday attacked Zabarmari community in the Jere Local Government Area of Borno, killing the farmers in a gruesome way.

Shehu told the BBC on Monday that farmers and residents ought to get security clearance before visiting certain areas in Borno, adding that the military was in “full control” of all parts of the state.

His comment, however, sparked outrage on social media, as many Nigerians interpreted this to blaming the farmers for the murder.

But in a series of tweets later on Monday, the presidential spokesperson explained that Zabarmari marshlands are filled with land mines and movement is usually subjected to “military oversight”.

He said as a human, he could not have said the victims deserved their fate for “ignoring security clearance”.

“Today, I found myself leading the trends in the social media for the wrong reasons. The State of Borno is essentially a military zone up till now that we are talking and much of what people do, much of where they go are governed by the exigencies of security,” he wrote.

“Routinely, traders, administration officials and even UN agencies get the green light to go to many of the areas to avoid trouble. Information from security agencies says that the Zabarmari marshlands are infested with land mines and movements in around those areas subject to military oversight.

“No one is delighted with the massacre in Zabarmari and there is nothing anybody will gain by playing blame games. The question I tried to answer on BBC was: did the security sign off on the area as being free of mines and terrorists? The honest answer is, no.

“I was merely explaining the mode of military operations in the war zone of the North-East. There are areas that are still volatile that require security clearance which is intended to put people out of harm’s way.

“When tragedies occur, questions arise in terms of how something happened in order to avoid future recurrence. Informing the military of our movements in an area of volatility and uncertainty is intended to preserve public safety.

“Explaining why something happened doesn’t mean I have no sympathy for the victims. I was just explaining the military procedures on the safe movement of the people and not supporting the death of the victims.”