Emergency rule may end soon – Jonathan

The emergency rule currently in place in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa States may not last up to six months prescribed by the nation’s constitution, President Goodluck Jonathan hinted on Sunday.
At a meeting with the Secretary General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-Moon, on the sideline of the Special Summit of the African Union in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, the President said with the success recorded so far, the troops may soon be deployed back to the barracks.
President Jonathan told the UN Scribe that the military operation in the troubled states was going very well, adding that members of the Special Forces have been observing the rules of engagement laid down by the military authorities.
According to him, there has been minimal civilian casualties, noting that the deployment of troops operation has helped in creating a better relationship between the civilian population and members of the armed forces.
He therefore, assured the UN Secretary General that government would do everything within its powers to reduce hardship on the part of the civilian populace.
President Jonathan also said government’s decision to release women and children members of the Boko Haram was in the spirit of the rules of engagement of the operation.
In his remarks, Ki-Moon sympathised with the government and people of Nigeria over he activities of Boko Haram.
He insisted that the international community must work together to defeat terrorism which he described as “a global phenomenon”.
However, he restated his position that the Nigerian military deployed to the affected states must be conscious of the need to protect the civilian.
Ki-Moon thanked President Jonathan for Nigeria’s contributions to peacekeeping operations of the United Nations, calling for Nigeria’s support in ensuring permanent resolution of the political crises in Guinea Bissau.