Jonathan challenges African, European leaders to identify sponsors of Boko Haram, other terror groups

Abubakar Shekau, Boko Haram leader

“The total value of what these terrorists possess as individuals, in terms of what they wear, where they live, cannot buy an assault rifle.”
African leaders must work with their European partners to collectively unearth the sponsors and supporters of terror groups who are determined to destabilize Africa, President Goodluck Jonathan has said.
Mr. Jonathan, in apparent reference to the Boko Haram terrorist group, said although the weapons of choice of these terror groups are the Small Arms and Light Weapons, they have also acquired rocket propelled grenades and surface-to-air missiles.
“Where do they get these sophisticated weapons? The total value of what these terrorists possess as individuals, in terms of what they wear, where they live, cannot buy an assault rifle. We all have the collective responsibility to un-earth their sponsors and supporters who are determined to destabilise Africa.  We should hold them responsible and accountable for their actions” he said.
President Jonathan was speaking the 4th European Union- African Union Summit ongoing in Brussels, Belgium when he gave a speech as the Chairman African Union Peace and Security Council.
The Boko Haram have since 2009 killed thousands of people in Northern Nigeria in various terror attacks on schools, religious places of worship, markets, security buildings, villages, and others. The attacks led to the declaration of a state of emergency in three northeastern states of Adamawa, Borno, and Yobe last year.
Despite the emergency rule, Amnesty International estimates that over 1,500 people have been killed in 2014 by the Boko Haram and in counter operations by Nigerian security forces in the northeast.
The AU-EU summit
Over 90 delegations from different countries are attending the summit which has ‘investing in people, prosperity and peace’ as its theme. The summit is focusing on ways to deepen cooperation under the three areas identified in the theme.
Speaking further, Mr. Jonathan said the summit is taking place against the backdrop of significant peace and security challenges facing not only Africa but Europe and the rest of the world.
He noted that considering their linkages, “tackling the issue of peace and security calls for a holistic and integrated approach, as peace and development are two sides of the same coin”.
Mr. Jonathan also said in the face of the new threats and challenges facing Africa, the peace and security architecture needs to be strengthened and an African Standby Force needs to be fully operationalised.
“We need to give stronger impetus to capacity – building and logistical support to boost Africa’s capability and preparedness to take pre-emptive steps to contain conflict situations, quell violence, and deal with the scourges of terrorism.
“There is need for renewed efforts to address the challenges at hand, in the context of our Partnership. The modest successes recorded in tackling the peace and security challenges confronting us notwithstanding, the fact remains that we may continue to fall short of the target of ridding Africa of conflicts if the nexus that exists between peace and development is not fully explored and developed.
“Our approaches must therefore be integrated while simultaneously addressing the socio-political factors that push countries to conflict, with their attendant humanitarian and socio-economic consequences” he said.
The President said given the importance Nigeria attaches to the subject of peace and security in Africa, the country organized a summit on “Human Security, Peace and Development: An Agenda for the 21st Century” during its recent Centenary celebrations. He said over 20 Heads of State and Governments and heads of international organizations such as the United Nations, African Union, the European Union and the League of Arab States were in attendance.
He said the summit had resolved, in part, that Africa must continue to strengthen existing mechanisms for national and international conflict management, and create new avenues for co-operation within and between our peoples and our nations.
“Since the transformation of the OAU to AU in 2000, Africa has demonstrated sustained desire for the development of collective security arrangement among its member states and its regional economic communities.
“We have established a security management system and the codification of standards within Africa’s Peace and Security Architecture (APSA). This includes the Peace and Security Council, a Continental Early Warning System, the Panel of the Wise and the African Standby Force (ASF). As part of the efforts to bolster the governance architecture in the continent, we have recently added the Africa Capacity for Immediate Response to Crises (ACIRC).
“In our resolve to check the new threat of piracy in some of our maritime boundaries and curb the menace of oil theft, we have subscribed to modalities and action plans to confront these challenges. These include the outcomes of the London Conference in 2012 on the situation in Somalia and the Yaoundé Summit on Maritime Safety and Security in the Gulf of Guinea in June, 2013.
“In addition to these initiatives, we have organs within the AU with mandates to strengthen the Peace and Security Architecture. These include: The African Commission on Human and Peoples Right, the African Court on Human and Peoples Rights and the Pan-African Parliament” he said.
Mr. Jonathan said the coming into force of the African Charter on Democracy, Election and Government as a legally binding instrument is a further re-affirmation “of our collective resolve at outlawing unconstitutional change of government in Africa.
“Notwithstanding these initiatives, new and emerging threats that necessitate concerted and holistic focus have emerged. These include political conflicts that threaten hard- won peace and democracies, and worse still, the phenomenon of piracy and terrorism.
He expressed appreciation for the assistance rendered by the EU and other development partners to Nigeria and other African countries in addressing the menace of local terror groups like Boko Haram in Nigeria and other groups operating in the Sahel region.
“We have always maintained that a terror attack on one nation is an attack on us all,” the president said.