Walter Carrington, a former United States’ Ambassador to Nigeria, says it is important to rescue and bring back as many Chibok girls as possible.

The retired diplomat however, said the US government will not support any moves to offer financial reward to the Boko Haram insurgents in exchange for Chibok girls.

The Boko Haram terrorists abducted over 200 Chibok girls from the secondary school, in April 2014, and since then, they have remained in captivity.

Carrington says in spite of the US’ position on negotiating with terrorists, it will not opposes President Muhammadu Buhari, if he chooses to take that course of action.

“The American position is refusing to negotiate (with terrorists) for the release of prisoners by paying a ransom on the feeling that if you pay a ransom to release somebody you will only encourage the terrorists to take other prisoners.

If President Buhari thinks negotiation is likely to bring about some kind of change I don’t think that will bring opposition officially from the US to his negotiating with Boko Haram.”

“I think it is extremely important that we get back as many of the Chibok girls as we can. My own personal view is that I will think of anything that can be done to bring back the girls. I have no idea of what the President is thinking about doing.

There are all kinds of rumours but no real facts. So, I will support any successful efforts to get the girls back.”

Furthermore, Walter Carrington said the Boko Haram insurgents do not have an ideology as strong as that of ISIS, in spite of their affiliation.

He said Boko Haram does not represent the view of the majority, and as such, can be defeated and degraded.

“Boko Haram is not as ideological as the IS. The Islamic State has so many adherents among the population. I don’t think Boko Haram has that. Boko Haram is different; it does not represent, I think, a large portion of the population in the areas in which it operates. In fact, so much of its violence is carried out against other Muslims.”

“Boko Haram is much more susceptible to being defeated or at least degraded and curtailed by the military might than is IS in the Middle-East because I don’t think it really has that groundswell. Boko Haram does not represent a view of the majority in the North-East of the country otherwise they would not be resorting to the kind of violence like they have been doing.”

Kolapo Olapoju