A massive crowd of cheering supporters mobbed Nigerian opposition leader Muhammadu Buhari in the embattled northeast city of Maiduguri on Monday, as the candidate vowed tough action against Boko Haram if elected.
The JTF Commanders on ground were reported to have been taken by surprise and shocked at Buhari’s daring request to proceed to Chibok immediately after the rally and refused to provide him security cover until they received a clearance from their superiors in Abuja.
Buhari left for Chibok inspite of their refusal to go along with him and was moved when he came out and saw the thousands of Civilian JTF members who had volunteered to provide security for him,the Borno Governor and their entourage to and from Chibok Town,and off they went.
Buhari Takes Campaign To Borno
People flooded the streets surrounding the airport in the Borno state capital before Buhari’s arrival, defying security fears in a city repeatedly attacked by the Islamist militants.
The people and parents of Chibok were filled with hope and joy upon sighting Buhari and his entourage,and escorted him into Chibok with singing and dancing.
All Progressives Congress (APC) party candidate Buhari, a former military ruler, pledged to reverse the perceived failures of President Goodluck Jonathan in tackling the rebel uprising.
“If we get the people’s mandate… Nigerians will begin to see a government that really care(s),” he told the crowd after visiting the area’s top Islamic cleric, the Shehu of Borno.
“It is not going to be easy, tackling the insurgency, but we are determined to face it squarely,” he said.
Buhari has not articulated a detailed plan to crush the uprising but has repeatedly promised to get troops proper equipment to fight an increasingly well-armed extremist movement.
Buhari’s drive from the airport to the Shehu’s palace — which normally takes 10 minutes — lasted more than two hours as people thronged the streets seeking a glimpse of the presidential hopeful.
After meeting the Shehu, Buhari attempted to move to the nearby Ramat square to address a campaign rally but again his movements were slowed by a mass of supporters.
An AFP reporter said the trip, which normally takes five minutes, took more than an hour and that the crowd at Ramat was perhaps the largest ever gathering in Maiduguri.
Crowd receives Buhari in Maiduguri
After he addressed the people and parents of the girls, a pastor offered prayers for the safe return of Buhari and his entourage back home and for his victory at the polls.
The villagers got emotional and some of them started weeping when the General was getting set to depart for Maiduguri later in the night.
The boisterous crowd virtually drowned out the candidate’s speech, the reporter added.
-culled from PM News
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