Okechukwu Uwaezuoke
The Donald Trump administration is expected to reveal to lawmakers its five-year plan to address the Boko Haram rebellion in North-east Nigeria and the Lake Chad region.
This is pursuant to a law signed by former U.S. President Barack Obama last December. The law arose from a bill proposed by Congresswoman Fredericka Wilson, reported the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) Monday.
Indication that the Trump administration will unveil its Boko Haram plan was contained in a notification letter addressed to the congresswoman by the U.S. Department of State.
Last month, U.S. Senator Susan Collins and Wilson led a bipartisan group of 50 members of Congress in writing to the U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Secretary of Defence James Mattis, and Director of National Intelligence Daniel Coats, requesting an update on their efforts to counter Boko Haram.
In December 2016, legislation introduced by Collins and Wilson was signed into law requiring the U.S. government to develop a comprehensive plan to help the Nigerian government and its partners combat Boko Haram and address the legitimate concerns of affected, vulnerable populations.
Collins and Wilson’s legislation, which responded to the terrorist organisation’s kidnapping of 276 schoolgirls in Nigeria in 2014, directs the Secretary of State, Secretary of Defence, and the Director of National Intelligence to submit to Congress a five-year anti-Boko Haram strategy by June 12, 2017.
“While we were encouraged by the release of 82 of the Chibok schoolgirls…, it is imperative that we remember that many of the girls remain in captivity along with untold hundreds of other women, men, and children who have been kidnapped by Boko Haram,†Collins and Wilson wrote to members of the administration.
“…We look forward to receiving an update on your efforts to develop an anti-Boko Haram strategy and beginning the process of dismantling Boko Haram and reuniting all of the Chibok schoolgirls with their families.â€
