A United States Congressional Delegation on Sunday, revealed
that US troops are ready to be deployed in the search for the over 234
female students that were abducted on April 14, from Government Girls
Secondary School, Chibok, Borno State, by Boko Haram sect member
Sheila Jackson-Lee
The
US delegation Representatives which comprised Steve Stockman, Sheila
Jackson-Lee, Frederica Wilson and Lois Frankel made this known at a news
conference in Abuja.
Speaking at the Unity Fountain which was
the venue of the conference, Stockman said: “We get briefed by the
military and pending the approval of the government of Nigeria and our
government, we plan to take action but I don’t think we are going into
specifics this time; it was a classified briefing. We stand ready to
help and as soon as our government and Nigerian government approve, we
will take action.”
Jackson-Lee on his part revealed that the
United States is currently helping with the training of officials of the
Nigerian Army.
“What I want to say is that I think what it is
right now is to work with the Nigerian government in training of the
military. I want to emphasise again here that we have come all these
miles to say that our Congress stands ready to cooperate with the
government in a manner that is appropriate and with the consent of
Nigerian government. And I want to emphasise the need for the Victims
Relief Fund because there is so much suffering going on by the young
girls and the families that have been touched by this violence” he said.
She
went further to call on the federal government to endeavor to establish
a National Victims Fund for victims of insurgency, adding that such
fund would be required for the rehabilitation of such people.
“Collectively,
we bring a wide range of special knowledge to Nigeria and to focus on a
very important issue. We have come from the United States to focus on
bringing the girls back and to focus on stopping the violence of Boko
Haram” Jackson-Lee said. “So we come today with solution; we also come
today in asking the North east and Nigeria to continue to accept
international help and it is time to find a way to contain the Boko
Haram and save the lives of so many.”
The delegates stressed the
need for compensation to all the victims who have suffered at the hands
of Boko Haram, for the girls who are still missing, for the girls who
escaped, for their families, for the father who spoke about his missing
daughter and the victims who have perished as well as their families.
“We
thank President Obama and the United States Congress for its very keen
interest on the question of bringing the girls back, and stopping the
horrific violence of Boko Haram,” Jackson-Lee said, adding that the
decision shows unity about the crisis inflicted on the girls, women and
their families, and went ahead to urge the Northeast and Borno State to
stop the Boko Haram menace.
On his part, Stockman, who is the
chairman of the humanitarian mission remarked that , they hope to join
Nigeria in a comprehensive partnership to fight insurgency, and promised
to join resolve the problem, while Frederica Wilson, reiterated the
United States stand with Nigeria in putting an end to terrorism. He
described the Chibok girls abduction as “outrageous”.
