Director-General, State Security Service, Mr. Ekpenyong Ita
Determined to bring activities of the Boko Haram sect under total control, the Director General of the Department of State Security (DSS), Mr. Ekpenyong Ita, yesterday said that the SSS and other relevant agencies are working with important stakeholders in order to bring peace back to the country.
The Director said this at the opening of a one week training programme for media practitioners in Abuja. He affirmed that some politicians have turned the activities of the Islamist extremists into a business venture.
Ita noted that recent discovery of the reason behind their activities is different from the claims made earlier by the outlawed sect on why they are striking.
According to him, the group started as an extremist religious group under the leadership of the late Mohammed Yusuf, but later turned into a business platform.
He observed that members of the group are now making a good living out of their criminal activities.
He assured Nigerians that the security agencies in the country are ready to bring their activities to an end. He declared: “we are not overwhelmed, we can never be overwhelmed and we will never be overwhelmed. We are up to the task”.
Ita added that despite the incessant bombing of innocent Nigerians across the turbulent northern region, the reigns of the dreaded group will soon go into oblivion.
The director confirmed that some members of the group now engage in armed robberies and other fraudulent activities.
He said: “what is brought in is divided into five portions with the leader given a portion and the rest four divided among those who took part in the robbery, while a portion will be given to alleged widows, the less privileged and as well, the elderly.
“However, the four groups aside the leaders are forced to pay “zakat” which in turn are remitted into the account of the leaders who use such proceeds to purchase exotic cars and flaunt their wealth which run contrary to the tenet of Islam which they allegedly profess.”
While calling on the media to contribute its quota to the fight against terrorism in the county, Ita said they should avoid giving them unnecessary publicity in order not to instil fear in the minds of the citizens.
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