President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday said the situation in Borno State due to the Boko Haram insurgency would have been worse but for his administration.
The president stated this when he visited the palace of the Shehu of Borno, Abubakar El-Kanemi, as part of his official trip to Borno State.
The presidency had earlier this week announced that Mr Buhari had cancelled his scheduled casual leave to visit Borno, especially in view of recent losses suffered by soldiers fighting the Boko Haram insurgents.
Borno is the state most affected by the Boko Haram insurgency, with the governor saying about 100,000 people have died due to he insurgency since 2009.
Scores of soldiers and civilians were killed in recent attacks on military bases and civilian population in Borno by the insurgents.
The worst of the attacks occured in Metele about a forthnight ago where the terrorists attacked an army base killing over 100 soldiers.
At the palace of Shehu of Borno, Mr Buhari said his administration will do everything to secure the country.
He commiserated with all Nigerians who lost loved ones following recent setbacks in the fight against terrorists.
“We have to remind ourselves where we were and where we are now and what happened in between,” he said.
“The people of Borno State know what we did in the last three years. The situation would have been worse,” he said.
Mr Buhari also expressed his determination to change the unemployment situation of youth in the country, pointing out that “jobs for the young persons, especially those who are 30 and below in Borno State and across the federation continue to engage our attention. We go to bed with it and wake up with it.”
In his remarks, the Shehu of Borno, who spoke on behalf of the State’s Council of Chiefs, thanked the president for bringing peace to the state and asked for intensive security patrols across the territories to save people from attacks on farms.
Also on Wednesday, the president ordered the military to eliminate all threats of Boko Haram, declaring that the war against terrorism is “a must win’’.