Here’s the gist of what President Buhari told military bosses after Boko Haram killed over 100 soldiers in Metele, Borno State.

President Buhari meets with service chiefs after he succeeded Goodluck Jonathan as President in 2015

President Muhammadu Buhari read the riot act to his military chiefs and told them that the kind of lapses that lead to Boko Haram terrorists sacking a military base and killing over 100 soldiers in Metele, Borno State, would no longer be tolerated on his watch.

The president summoned a meeting with his service chiefs on Sunday, November 25, 2018, a week after the Metele massacre.

One Aso Rock source told Pulse that the military bosses who attended this meeting were Minister of Defence Dan Ali Monsur, Chief of Defense Staff General Abayomi Gabriel Olonisakin, Chief of Army Staff Lt Gen. Tukur.Y. Buratai, Chief of Naval Staff Vice Admiral IE Ibas and Chief of Air Staff Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar.

National Security Adviser Babagana Monguno, Director of State Security (DSS) Yusuf Bichi, Inspector General of Police Ibrahim Idris and members of the police service commission, were also part of the meeting.

“After the president laid into his military chiefs for the attack on the 157 Task Force Battalion, he asked them to prepare a plan of action detailing how to prevent terrorist attacks of that nature”, a source at the nation’s presidential villa told Pulse on condition of anonymity because he had not been permitted to speak to the press on the development.

“At the end, it was a fruitful meeting because everyone agreed to sit up”, the source disclosed.

Buhari asks military bosses to do better on intelligence gathering

ThisDay also reports that President Buhari received security briefings from his service chiefs and told them to do better as it concerns the intelligence component of the war against Boko Haram insurgents.

Buhari during one of his meetings with the nation’s service chiefs

“The Commander-in-Chief wanted to see an effective work plan that would prevent this kind of breach (in the future)”, ThisDay writes.

There have been stories suggesting that senior military officers feed fat on monies earmarked for the purchase of sophisticated weaponry for fighting troops. According to ThisDay, President Buhari dwelt on the allegations as well.

“He (Buhari) was also interested, and particularly demanded a quick update on the state of armoury, recent purchases and the state and quality of the arms and ammunition available,” the newspaper adds.

Buhari says attack left him in shock

On Saturday, November 24, President Buhari released a statement to say the killing of soldiers in dusty Metele had left him shell shocked.

“No responsible Commander-in-Chief would rest on his oars or fold his hands to allow terrorists to endanger the lives of its military personnel and other citizens.

 President Buhari recently increased the wages of police officers as a way to better handle internal security

“Our loyal forces have proved their strength over the terrorists and we are ready to give them all the needed support in terms of equipment and manpower to succeed in ending the renewed threat.

“In the coming days, I am engaging the Military and Intelligence Chiefs in extensive discussions on the next steps we shall be taking”, the president had said.

Boko Haram’s war with Nigeria

Reports say the Abu Musab al-Barnawi faction of Boko Haram, known as the Islamic State West Africa (ISWA), masterminded the Metele attack.

Nigeria has been waging a war against Boko Haram since 2009. The terrorist sect is hell bent on establishing a hard-line Islamic caliphate in Northeastern Nigeria.

Boko Haram has killed more than 50,000 people while displacing millions, since the commencement of its insurgency against the state.

Some soldiers have lamented the obsolete equipment they have been handed to wage war against the terrorists.

The Buhari administration often claims that Boko Haram is now a spent force that has been sufficiently degraded and technically defeated, but the terrorist sect continues to mount soft target attacks, abduct school kids and overrun military bases.

The Nigerian Air Force bombed terrorist hideouts after the Metele military base attack.