A public affairs analyst, Mahmud Othman on Tuesday said President Goodluck Jonathan last week missed an opportunity to deal with the real issue surrounding the increasing waves of insecurity in Northern Nigeria when he visited Borno and Yobe States.
Mr Othman, who was a guest on Channels Television’s breakfast programme, Sunrise Daily, said rather than listen to the advice of the Borno Elders, who have first-hand knowledge of the real issue surrounding the Boko Haram insurgency, President Jonathan sounded combative in his response to them.
He said what the elders told the president “was an honest assessment of the situation on ground because they are the people there.” But rather than listen to them, the analyst said the president blamed them for the insurgency.
“It’s like blaming the victim for a crime committed,” he said.
He said, “If the Federal Government is really interested in peace that is not the way to handle the situation. Mr President, with all due respect, sounded very combative as if there was some kind of template he was reproducing without editing.”
Watch the video below for the complete interview with Mr Othman:
