SSS accuses communities of shielding Boko Haram members

The Director of the State Security Service in
charge of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja,
Mr. Little Okojie, has alleged that some
communities are shielding members of Boko
Haram from security operatives.
Okojie said the security threat posed by the
sect had become seemingly intractable
because of the cover provided for the
members by communities.
The SSS director also said the sect’s
asymmetric mode of operation also
contributed to the difficulty in going into meaningful dialogue with them.
Okojie spoke in Abuja while playing host to the newly elected executive members of the
Abuja chapter of the Nigeria Union of Journalists on Wednesday.
He said the situation was further complicated by the fact that intermediaries of the group
refuse to disclose the identities of the members of the sect.
However, he restated the determination of the SSS and other security agencies to ensure
effective coordination of the campaign against crimes in the society.
He lamented that some members of the public decline to volunteer information on the
activities of Boko Haram members to security operatives.
The director urged journalists to ensure a strict adherence to the ethics of their profession by
giving accurate account of events being reported.
Secretary of the NUJ in Abuja, Mr. Emmanuel Ogbeche, said the union was ready to
collaborate with the secret police in its responsibility of monitoring governance in the
interest of the public.
Ogbeche, who commended the SSS for its openness, saying it was necessary for journalists
to understand the mode of operation of the service in the bid to achieve the desired
development of the society.: