Usman Yusuf, secretary of the Chief of Defence Staff Action Committee, says the recent release of the remaining kidnapped train passengers is not the end of Boko Haram and bandits’ attacks, urging Nigerians to play an active role in securing the country and freeing those still held hostage. 

Mr Yusuf stated, “The fact that these 23 victims are released does not mean it is the end of our journey. There are many more in the hands of the bandits and Boko Haram.”

The CDS committee secretary added, “Our goal is peace for this country, which is why we came in. We are glad that the chief of defence staff has found the committee useful to complement their collective components.”

He noted that securing the country was not the responsibility of security agencies alone but the collective efforts of all Nigerians.

“We should not only sit and begin to lament that the security (agencies) are not doing anything,” Mr Yusuf stressed. “God will ask each and every one of us what we did, and that is why we came in. This is our country, and we have no other apart from it.” 

Mr Yusuf made the appeal in an interview with journalists on Thursday, shortly after President Muhammadu Buhari met with the released 23 Abuja-Kaduna train passengers at the Nigerian Defence Academy in Kaduna.

(NAN)