Again, Jonathan meets Chadian President over insurgency

Deby and Jonathan

President Goodluck Jonathan on Monday in N’Djamena, the Chadian capital reiterated the need for Nigeria and her neighbours to intensify joint actions and cooperation to win the war against terrorism and insurgency.

A statement by the his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, quoted the President as speaking to reporters at the Presidential Palace in N’Djamena after a closed-door meeting with his Chadian counterpart, President Idris Deby.

Abati further quoted the President as saying that their talks focused mainly on security and economic cooperation.

He reportedly told the journalists that the Boko Haram sect had a lot of external influence from outside Africa and it had become more imperative for all countries in the region to work together to overcome terrorism and other criminal activities across their borders.

“If you look at the economies of Nigeria and Chad both are linked. The Boko Haram people don’t take permission to move from Chad, Niger, Cameroon and Nigeria.

“If the countries do not cooperate, we will not find it easy to win the war, because when the heat is strong in one country, the criminals and terrorists will go to another one and hide.

“So, we must work together and we are discussing along that line,” Jonathan reportedly told reporters.

He also recalled that his visit to Chad was the second in the last one month, noted that it underscored the importance of building a “robust relationship” between both countries to improve trade, economic and security ties.

He said that discussions between both countries on cooperation in the ICT sector were ongoing and expressed optimism that more proficient use of modern technology would help greatly to address economic and security challenges in the region.

Jonathan, who was accompanied on the one-day official visit by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Aminu Wali, and the Director-General the National Intelligence Agency, Ambassador Ayodele Oke had returned to Abuja.

It will be recalled that Jonathan had, on September 8, held a closed-door security meeting with Deby to discuss ways of ending the Boko Haram menace.

The meeting between both leaders was a follow-up to their discussions in Nairobi, Kenya, about a week earlier on the sidelines of the African Union Peace and Security Council summit.