FG negotiating with terrorists over abducted train passengers – Garba Shehu

The Senior Special Assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, has said that it is wrong to conclude that the president is not paying attention to the security crisis and killings happening in the country.

Shehu said this on Friday in an interview on Friday, adding that negotiations were ongoing between some officials and the terrorists who attacked an Abuja-Kadina train on March 28 and abducted dozens of passengers in the process.

The presidency’s spokesman noted that the officials were trying to see how to hasten up the negotiations so that normalcy could be restored in the train service.

He said, “If we look at all the facts, I accompanied the president to Sokoto State on condolence after a major incident. I have accompanied him to Zamfara; I have accompanied him to Benue State where he addressed the governor (Samuel Ortom) in Makurdi after a major incident.

“And also we went to Jos (Plateau State) after a crisis; did the president go to all of the places where there have been violence or killings? No he didn’t go; I’m not saying that.

“However it is unfair also to make the conclusion wrongly that he has not paid attention or he has not visited; we have been to Maiduguri (Borno State) quite a number of times, it depends on where Nigerians choose to look at, the president has been responsive and he has been discharging the obligations that rest on him as president.

“We are aware that there has been resistance from family members of those taken captive and of course this is expected, this then should increase the pressure on all of the people who are involved in the ongoing discussions with the terrorists and ensure a safe release of those that are being held.

“The position of government has been stated overtime that the success of any operation will be determined by the number of recoveries of human beings alive and well not at the turn of death and the government has spoken that negotiations are ongoing.

“It will obviously be difficult but we hope that the need to resume normalcy will itself act as a pressure on all those engaged in the process expeditiously ensure that return is achieved on all those held captive.”