Releasing Chibok girls information’ll damage ties with Nigeria –UK

There is a strong indication that the
United Kingdom is withholding
intelligence information as regard
the more than 200 Chibok
schoolgirls kidnapped by Boko
Haram since April 14, 2014.
The girls, until their abduction,
were pupils of the Government
Secondary School, Chibok, Borno
State.
The British government claimed
that revealing details of what it
found about the whereabouts of
the abducted girls would clearly
damage its relationship with
Nigeria and other allies.
This revelation came after a UK-
based group, Security in Africa,
through its founder, Ben Oguntala,
wrote the British Ministry of
Defence to request for information
on the Chibok girls.
“The information was sent on
January 30 this year and the UK
government has 20 days to comply.
They do have a defence of national
security and that would prevent
them from disclosing the
information. Let’s hope they don’t.
If they rely on national security
defence, we can raise the matter
with the Information
Commissioner’s office to determine
if their claim of national security is
reasonable,” Oguntala told our
correspondent while requesting for
the information.
The SIA founder, who had earlier in
January this year said it was setting
up a taskforce to go to Sambisa
Forest to secure the release of the
abducted schoolgirls, requested
from the UK government to know
the “results and reports of the
British Armed Forces, the details of
where they searched and the
results of their findings.
“We also seek to have the details of
the technology, technique or
methodology used in the search
and the consequential results,” he
wrote in his request letter.
But, in a letter from the MOD’s
Permanent Joint Headquarters in
Middlesex, dated February 25, a
copy of which was made available
to our correspondent, the British
government said some of the
information requested by Oguntala
“falls entirely within the scope of
the qualified exemption provided
for at section 27 (International
Relations) of the FOIA and has been
withheld.”
It said, “Section 27 is a qualified
exemption and is subject to public
interest testing which means that
the information requested can only
be withheld if the public interest in
doing so outweighs the public
interest in disclosure.
“Section 27(1)(a), (1)(c) and (2)
have been applied because some
of the information has the potential
to adversely affect relations with
our allies. The Public Interest Test
concluded that whilst release
would increase public
understanding and confidence in
the relation the United Kingdom
has with other international states
in its assistance with operations,
the balance of the public interest
lay in withholding the information
you desire.
“We have considered it necessary
to apply the higher level of
prejudice against release of the
exempted information at the
higher level of ‘would’ rather than
‘would be likely to’ adversely affect
relations with our allies.”
The British defence ministry stated
that it would not release the
details of where the UK soldiers
searched and the results of their
findings.
It however shared details of the
“technology, technique or
methodology” used in the search.
According to the MOD, the RAF
Sentinel R1 and Tornado aircraft
were used to “provide imagery and
other data as part of a combined
effort with Nigeria and other
nations.”
The Sentinel R1 is the UK Royal Air
Force’s only long-range wide area
battlefield surveillance asset,
providing critical intelligence and
target tracking information to
British and Coalition forces.
“After the 1990 Gulf War, it was
identified by the allies that
Intelligence, Surveillance and
Reconnaissance had played a key
role in the success of this
operation. In particular, the use of
Synthetic Aperture Radar and
Ground Moving Target Indicator had
proved invaluable in the tracking
and prosecution of enemy ground
forces. This galvanised the UK to
acquire its own capability and in
1993 the requirement was
endorsed by the MOD,” the RAF said
on its website.
Not deterred by the response of
the MOD, Oguntala said his group
would also approach the British
Prime Minister to “reveal what he
can about the Chibok girls.”
“I have had several persons
suggesting that I drop the matter
and claiming Boko Haram is being
used by political players. This
information request approach
means if the British government
declares what it knows, there will
be no place for Nigerian political
players to hide,” he said.

British government need to talk nw exposed them let no those behind it

They should o