Maj.-Gen. Bulama Biu, the General Officer Commanding (GOC) 7 Div, Maiduguri, has refuted social media reports quoting him as talking about the possibility of insurgents attaining position of leadership in the country.

Speaking to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Maiduguri on Monday, Biu, who is also the commander, Sector 1, operation ‘Lafiya Dole’ , described the reports as not only misleading but “mischievous”.

NAN recalls that Biu had on Saturday called on insurgents still in the bush, to surrender and embrace the peace building process in the northeast.

The GOC said the report did not only quote him out of context but also a deliberate campaign of misinformation.

“I want to emphatically say that such misinformation is rather unfounded, baseless and at best, mere figment of the authors’ jaundiced imagination.

“In specific, I appealed to Boko Haram insurgents to accept the opportunity provided to them through the ‘Operation Safe Corridor’, to lay down their arms, rejoin the society, reintegrate themselves, be productive,and do better things.

“I also moved further to say that there are a lot of opportunities for them to gain if they surrender themselves without being confronted,” he explained.

He called on the people to disregard the story and support the military in the counter-insurgency campaign, to bring about lasting peace to the northeast.