A group, The Good Governance Initiative (GGI) has said that the Nigerian army acted within its mandate to protect the territorial integrity of the country during its clash with the sect, Islamic Movement in Nigeria led by its detained head, El-Zakzaky.

It also said that the released White Paper on the Judicial Commission of Enquiry that investigated the clash between the Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN) and the Nigerian Army by the Kaduna State Government which exonerated the army from the killings that followed the clash is a welcome development.

The group also congratulated the Nigerian Army, saying Nigerians never doubted that it acted within its mandate of protecting the territorial integrity of the country.

In a statement signed by its Coordinator, Uche Madu John, it said Nigerians will continue to support the army in its quest to protect law abiding citizens from any form of aggressors.

It urged the Federal Government to immediately issue a directive for all security and military services to treat the IMN as a terror group while anyone caught committing a crime in its name must be tried under the relevant anti-terror legislations.

The statement reads partly, “We laud the exoneration of the Nigerian Army, which was cleared of any wrongdoing as an institution and we see this as the removal of obstacles that terrorist sponsors had tried to place in the way of the army to reduce its ability to protect NIgerians.

“The White Paper has laid to rest the true nature and status of IMN as an insurgent group whose members bear arms and had refused to evacuate Gyallesu area of Zaria, Kaduna state ahead of the referenced military operation in the report.

“We hope that those that have been mounting propaganda on behalf of IMN, including international contractors like Amnesty International, would now accept the position stated in the document that the Nigerian Army abided by its Rules of Engagement in dealing with the terrorist organisation.”

He further urged judicial officers to familiarise themselves with this document especially  since more IMN members could soon be charged to court over their role in the group’s decades of insurgency against the Nigerian state.

The statement reads further, “GGI urges the Federal Government to immediately implement the aspect of the White Paper that fall within its purview to ensure that the menace of the IMN and any other groups they may mutate into can be holistically dealt with since it is not all the states of the federation that can marshal the political will to tackle insurgency the way Kaduna has done.”