Opposition fuelling Boko Haram war, says group

The Coalition Against Terrorism and Extremism (CATE) in Nigeria has accused the opposition of working against the interest of government in the fight against insurgency.

Jonathan Audu, secretary general of the group, made the claim while addressing the media on Wednesday.

He said the nature of the attacks have changed from what was the norm to now exclusively target military formations, ambush troops and sack towns and villages.

Audu alleged that there was an established pattern of the attacks taking place once the opposition is running out of steam and issues to tackle the government on.

“Analyses show that the thugs reporting to the opposition are the ones that have diverted to the killing and kidnapping of innocent women and children and make it appear like the handiwork of Boko Haram. We were made to understand that this tactic allows the opposition to have instances it can use to accuse the federal government of allowing civilians to be killed,” he said.

“The party is also said to have opted for this approach because it hopes to use the fear of violence to keep people away from the polling units so that they do not get to vote because of the fear of violence.

“According to the intelligence we have received, the party will spread this campaign of terror further south as the elections draw closer. The objective is to make every inch of the country feel unsafe or Nigerians so that they can be deceived into thinking that the incumbent president has failed in securing their lives and property.

“CATE unequivocally condemns this irresponsible act whereby it is deploying its thugs to imitate Boko Haram attacks with a view to using it to criticise the government of the day. It is the most inhumane form of deception every carried out by humans on earth especially when it involves abusing human lives and depriving people of their lives.

“We demand that the party immediately retrace its steps and discontinue these attacks because they violate the rights of other citizens. The party must also hand over to law enforcement agencies those that conceived this idea, those that implemented it and those that are aware of the plot without doing anything to stop it.”