As President, I feel the pain, hear cries and share sorrows of Nigerians – Jonathan

President Goodluck Jonathan on Thursday reassured Nigerians that terrorists operating in the North-East would not get away with their atrocities.

In a new broadcast to the nation, Jonathan restated his administration’s determination to rout the terrorists and bring them to justice.

He said that the Federal Government had done the necessary groundwork to finally resolve the current security challenge in the country.

“Regrettably, terrorists have unleashed much pain and agony on our land. They have made widows of our mothers and sisters and orphans of our children.

“They have shut down businesses, desecrated places of worship and brought untold hardship to both men and women.

“They have violated the culture and peaceful way of life in our country, which took generations to build.

“They have destroyed countless schools and displaced people from their communities, driving them into exile.

“I want to assure you that the terrorists will not get away with their atrocities: they will not win; they will be routed.

“As President, I feel the pain of all affected communities and families. I hear their cries and share their sorrow and pain.

“We will not forget; we will not look the other way. We have done a lot of painstaking planning and work to resolve the current security challenge.

“We will bring justice to the savage terrorists known as Boko Haram. They will be defeated,” he said.

The president paid special tribute to personnel of the nation’s Armed Forces and other security agencies for their dedication and commitment to the war on terror.

He said the federal government was “re-equipping and re-positioning” the armed forces to boost their capacity to win the war.

Jonathan also commended all Nigerians for remaining vigilant and cooperative with the security agencies in the fight against “the common enemy”.

He urged citizens to renew their zeal and patriotism to serve the nation with “love, honesty, faithfulness and hope for a greater tomorrow.

“As I have always maintained, none of the challenges before us is insurmountable.

“We must come together as a people and work with single-minded unity of purpose to overcome them.

“Let us continue our march to the future, toward the attainment of our collective vision of a strong, united, prosperous and harmonious nation – a secure nation for us and for our coming generations,” the president said. (NAN)