Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has recalled how the administration of ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo swiftly quashed the Boko Haram insurgency at its early stage, citing strong political will as the driving force behind the action.
Speaking on Wednesday in Abuja during a courtesy visit by stakeholders from Kogi East Senatorial District, led by former Kogi State Deputy Governor Simon Achuba, Atiku shared insights into the government’s decisive response when the extremist group first surfaced.
In a video shared on his official Facebook page, Atiku narrated that Boko Haram initially emerged in Yobe State in 2002, prompting President Obasanjo to seek his input on an appropriate course of action.
“You remember when Boko Haram started in Yobe? It was actually in 2002. We were in office. The president called me and asked, ‘VP, what do we do about this?’ I said, ‘Mr. President, let’s call the Service Chiefs and give them a deadline. If they can’t end it, they should resign,’” Atiku recalled.
According to him, Obasanjo summoned the Service Chiefs, issued marching orders, and the security forces succeeded in suppressing the insurgents within weeks. “It never came up again until we left office,” he added.
Atiku attributed the later resurgence of Boko Haram and the widespread insecurity across Nigeria to the failure of subsequent administrations to act with the same resolve.
“There’s a lack of political will among our leaders. When people are being killed and you do nothing, it reflects a grave level of irresponsibility. You can’t eat while citizens are being slaughtered,” he said.
Atiku, who served as Vice President from 1999 to 2007 under Obasanjo during Nigeria’s Fourth Republic, emphasized that national security demands urgent and deliberate leadership.
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