The Director-General of Nigeria’s State Security Service (SSS), Ita Ekpeyong, said today that the Nigerian government was aware of the location of more than 200 high school girls kidnapped on April 14 by insurgents belonging to the Islamist group, Boko Haram. According to Mr. Ekpeyong, “Nigerians can go to bed.”
The DG’s assertion came as some security sources assured SaharaReporters that release of most of the abducted girls would happen soon following secret negotiations between members of the Jonathan administration and representatives of Boko Haram.
One source stated that the increasing confidence evident in the pronouncements of government officials and security agents came from the advanced stage of the negotiations with the abductors.
The source added that the Jonathan administration was working to maximize the political gain from the release of the abducted girls. “The plan is to secure the release of the Chibok girls around the 100th day of their abduction,” the source said.
Mr. Ekpeyong is the latest official to sound upbeat about the rescue of the Chibok girls. He spoke to State House correspondents at the end of a National Security Council meeting presided over by President Goodluck Jonathan. He echoed the federal government’s previous claims that its cautious approach to the rescue of the abducted girls was designed to avoid endangering the lives of the abducted girls.
According to Mr. Ekpeyong, “Government is making efforts. We know where they are, but we don’t want to endanger their lives. That is the truth. We want to take it gradually and release them at the appropriate time. We know where they are. You can go to bed with that.”
The SSS director-general insisted that, contrary to public perception, the government was winning the war against Boko Haram. He added that the few successful attacks by the terrorist group dominate the headlines, eclipsing many planned attacks foiled or repelled by the military.
“There are several things [the] government is doing; there are several attacks [the] government has stopped,” said the SSS boss.
He added, “nobody will remember those ones because we don’t tell you, but several things are going on.”