Boko Haram be crushed

It is astonishing to see the terrorist organization, Boko Haram, gaining influence in Nigeria. This group of insane people is terrorizing the population with impunity and is nowadays dreaming of creating a caliphate in Nigeria on the lines of the self-ascribed Islamic State.

Nigeria has a fairly strong army that has the capability to crush this group. The main actors should be dealt with an iron fist and the remnants should be educated properly and be given a chance to integrate into the society after rehabilitation. Many followers of these terrorist outfits are not well-versed with the teachings of Islam and are duped into believing that Islam is all about killing. These groups are only bringing a bad name to Islam. It is mainly due to the activities of these militant organizations, non-Muslims think that Muslims are far from civilization. It hurts me a lot to read such views expressed by various western writers.

It reports about Boko Haram marrying off kidnapped girls are to be believed, it poses a big question mark on the effectiveness of Goodluck Jonathan’s regime and the strength of the country’s armed forces. Both appeared to be helpless in the face of Boko Haram threat, as we still await some concrete action from the Nigerian government to eliminate this menace.

We feel sorry for the parents of the innocent girls in the clutches of Boko Haram. In the meantime, we read that the terrorist group has kidnapped more girls from various parts of the country. Just holding placards with “Bring back our girls!” inscribed on them will not work with these heartless brutes. The government should respond to them in the language they know: Arms.