Former Information Minister, Prof. Jerry Gana, on Saturday warned that armed groups behind the recent school kidnappings in Northern Nigeria might be taking children to use as human shields, based on threats reportedly made by U.S. President Donald Trump.
Gana made this statement during a reception in Abuja that celebrated the promotion of Adewale Adeniyi, the Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service, to chairman of the World Customs Organisation (WCO). He also spoke at a fundraising dinner for the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations’ national secretariat.
Gana, who had previously praised Adeniyi’s appointment to the WCO, said the way the recent school abductions are happening suggests that the criminals think a foreign attack might be coming soon.
He said, “Someone called me just before I came here to say that it seems like the bandits are taking the president of the United States’ threat seriously. So, it looks like they are now preparing human shields to protect themselves.”Gana warned that these abductions should be a big concern for “elders, statesmen and fathers of the nation,” and pointed out that the locations of the attacks suggest the kidnappers are moving deeper into forest areas.
He explained,
“They are worried that they might be hit from the air, so they felt the need to take some people as human shields.”Gana called on the Federal Government to work closely with international partners, noting that technology has advanced to the point where armed groups can be targeted from the air.
He added,
“I think the Nigerian government will need all the wisdom to work with whoever can help us. Technology has gone to a point where you can be targeted from the air. And I think these people need to be targeted now from the air.”