Jonathan says Buhari’s emergence as president did not end insurgency despite sect’s earlier trust in him.
Former President Goodluck Jonathan has disclosed that Boko Haram insurgents once nominated ex-President Muhammadu Buhari to represent them in peace talks with the Federal Government.
Jonathan made the revelation on Friday at the public presentation of Scars, a book by former Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Lucky Irabor (retd.), in Abuja.
He said, “One of the committees we set up then, the Boko Haram nominated Buhari to lead their team to negotiate with the government. So I was feeling that, oh, if they nominated Buhari to represent them and have a discussion with the government committee, then when Buhari took over, it could have been an easy way to negotiate with them and they would have handed over their guns. But it was still there till today.”
Jonathan noted that Boko Haram’s persistence highlighted the complexity of the insurgency, adding that his administration tried multiple approaches without fully resolving the crisis.