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Nigerian president pays "surprise visit" to Boko Haram's stronghold

Xinhua, January 16, 2015 Adjust font size:

Nigerian president Goodluck Jonathan on Thursday paid a "surprise" visit to the restive Borno State in northeastern region of the country, where the insurgency of Boko Haram has recently increased.

The president's unannounced visit to the crisis-ridden northern state raised the hopes of the local people, that it might help reduce abysmally, or end completely, the Boko Haram insurgence. He last visited the state in March 2013.

Jonathan arrived at the local airport in Maiduguri, capital of Borno State, at exactly 2.54 p.m. local time, according to a Xinhua reporter who noted more than 500 troops were deployed to the airport to provide security.

The Nigerian leader was received at the airport by the state governor, Kashim Shettima, the country's defense chief, Alex Badeh and the National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki, who joined an advance security team and arrived the state one hour before the president's arrival.

Efforts to know the president's mission in the state proved futile, as the visit was not pre-announced or scheduled. Local people in the state only heard about the visit an hour before the president's plane touched down in Maiduguri, according to the Xinhua reporter.

As of the time of filing this report, it was still unclear if the president would visit victims of a recent Boko Haram attack in Baga at an Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) settlement in the town, as being speculated by local people.

The Nigerian president had received many flak for failing to visit the state after more than 200 school girls of Chibok Town in southern part of Borno were kidnapped in April last year.

Some analysts said Jonathan's visit to the state, coming less than one month to the presidential election, was politically- inclined.

"He has finally decided to visit the state now because he is seeking re-election," said Akanni Rafiu, a Nigerian political analyst.

Borno State is a stronghold of Boko Haram and the headquarters of the militant group which seeks to enshrine the Islamic Sharia law in Africa's most populous country. Endi