Ignore Social Media, remain in your trenches to defeat Boko Haram, Buratai tells troops

The Chief of Army Staff Lt. Gen Tukur Buratai has charged the troops fighting the Boko Haram insurgents in the Northeast to ignore posts on Social Media and remain in their trenches in order to defeat the insurgents.

Buratai stated this during a Christmas luncheon with troops of Forward Operation Base of Delwa which was replicated across theatre on Wednesday in Borno State.

He told the troops of Operation Lafiya Dole to always remain in their trenches whenever they were under attack, saying the soldiers were more at risk when they moved out of their positions.

He said: “First of all, the importance of fire control or fire discipline is actually to conserves ammunitions, it is for you also to deal decisively with the adversary, if you observe this fire discipline, you will see that you allow the enemies to come very close to you, and you take aimed shots and you will never miss your enemy.

“The number of casualties is normally high the moment you move out of your trenches. You will discover that you are exposed and you become an easy target.

“You must remove that fear, it is fear that will make soldiers to leave their trenches, the fear of being killed or wounded but unfortunately you are more at risks when you leave your trenches.

The COAS also charged troops not to be influenced by the social media, advising them to think twice and ask questions upon anything that they see and read on the platforms as most publications there are misleading.

“The major challenges facing us nowadays is activities of some unpatriotic criminal elements on social media who doesn’t want stability and peace in this nations, so I urge you to be weary of them,” Buratai warned.

The COAS’s Christmas luncheon with troops of Theatre Operation Lafiya Dole was attended by Chief Training and Operation Army Headquarters, Maj. Gen. Lamidi Adeosun, Theatre Commander of Operation Lafiya Dole, Maj. Gen. Benson Akinroluyo, GOC 7 Divisions of NA, Bulama Biu and top other military officers from Army Headquarters.