Baga: FG to show images captured by NigeriaSat-2

The Federal Government will on Monday show satellite images of Baga captured by the nation’s earth observation satellite, otherwise known as NigeriaSat-2.

Our correspondent learnt that the Minister of Science and Technology, Prof. Ita Ewa, would show the images in a public ceremony in an attempt to counter the claim of a human right organisation.

The Human Rights Watch had on Wednesday denounced military’s claim that the fires that razed thousands of buildings in Baga, Borno State, were caused by rocket-propelled grenades fired by members of the violent Islamic sect, Boko Haram.

It was learnt that the planned public presentation of satellite images by Ewa is to counter the claim of the human right group.

 HRW, in a statement on its website, had said that satellite images showed that soldiers might have set the fires, claiming that a total of 2,275 buildings were razed while 125 others were severely damaged.

President Goodluck Jonathan had recently directed the Defence Headquarters and the National Emergency Management Agency to investigate the incident. Both organisations submitted their preliminary reports to the President last week.

According to a statement by the Special Adviser to the President (Media and Publicity), Dr. Reuben Abati, DHQ’s findings showed that 30 terrorists were killed during the crisis. It also said that six bodies were recovered in Lake Chad about three kilometres away from the action spot.

In its report, NEMA stated that a number of buildings and business premises were destroyed in Baga. It claimed that the total number of houses in the community was far less than 1,000.

But the HRW, in the statement by its Africa Director, Daniel Bekele, said that the area damaged by fires measured about 80,000 sq2.

Stating that the fires were detected by the MODIS sensor aboard NASA satellites, Aqua and Terra, the rights organisation said its findings corroborated claims by the residents that 2,000 houses and 183 bodies were burnt during the mayhem.

In a telephone interview with our correspondent, spokesman for the National Space Research Development Agency, Mr. Felix Ale, confirmed that the agency was in possession of satellite images of the incident and would soon make them public.

Many commentators had descended on HRW since it made the claim that 2,275 houses were burnt in Baga.

While some accused the organisation of bias, others said its figures had been exaggerated.

The HRW had said, “Because of the number of buildings destroyed as well as their distribution across large sections of the town, we believe that such fires were intentionally set and not inadvertently sparked by the detonation of rocket-propelled grenades or improvised explosive devices.

PUNCH