Military authorities in Nigeria have issued a challenge to Alhaji Asari Dokubo, inviting him to test the strength of the armed forces on the battlefield.
The challenge was thrown to the former Niger Delta Volunteer Force commander by the Director of Defence Media Operations, Major General Edward Buba, on Thursday in a statement.
Though, this was in response to claims made by Asari Dokubo that he had the power to shoot down a military chopper hovering near his home.
Dokubo had previously warned that he possessed the tactical capability to counter the military.
But in a bold retort, General Buba dared Dokubo to engage in direct combat with the military, promising that the ex-militant leader would be immediately “neutralised” if he took up the challenge.
He further called on the relevant security agencies to investigate Dokubo’s claims.
Buba said, “Now, to comment that he can shoot down military helicopters is laughable, and I am tempted to laugh about that. We are in a democracy, and we are professional; we cannot simply act on someone’s comments without due consideration, lest we be accused of being undemocratic.
“The military is not the only security agency or department in the country. Other security forces have a constitutional role to play in addressing these issues.
“I assure you that he does not possess that capability, but I will leave it to the appropriate security forces to handle the matter. Our mandate is to confront him on the battlefield and take him out. He should come to the battlefield and see whether we can react or not.”
Speaking further in the statement, Buba also clarified that the military’s primary focus remains on tackling terrorists across different regions of the country.
“Our enemy is terrorism,” he stated. “Whether in the northwest or northeast, where they are sometimes called bandits, they are all terrorists. We must call them what they are. Our troops have been making great strides, and as you can see from recent reports, we’ve eliminated over 300 terrorist leaders in the past three quarters and significantly weakened their fighting force.”
Buba stressed that the military’s objective is to reduce terrorist capabilities and seize weapons, which they have been achieving consistently.