Boko Haram overruns eight LGAs in Borno

•Gov cries out

•Sect urges fleeing Adamawa residents to return

•UN offers N580m relief

By Clement Ekong

Special Correspondent, Yola

The Borno State Governor, Kashim Shettima, on Tuesday cried out that Boko Haram insurgents have taken over eight out of the 27 local government areas of the state.

Shettima raised the alarm when he received members of the Federal Government Sub-committee of the Victims Supports Fund in Maiduguri.

He lamented that the continued attacks on communities in the state had created hardships on the people.

Shettima said: “The insurgents have taken over nearly eight LGAs in the state. They have taken over Gamboru-Ngala, Kala-Balge, Marte, Dikwa, Gwoza, Bama, Askira-Uba and part of Konduga local government areas. The insurgents have also carried out recent attacks in Abadam, Kukawa.”

Shettima, however, expressed optimism that the insurgency would end in a short while, adding, “I strongly believe that there is light at the end of the tunnel. We are going to bounce back very soon by the grace of God.”

Speaking earlier, retired Air Marshal Jonah Wuyep, the Sub-committee Chairman on Data Collection, had commended the governor for his support to displaced persons by the insurgency.

“We commend the responsible leadership of Shettima for what he has been doing in helping victims of insurgency in the state,” Wuyep said.

He said that the state alone cannot effectively provide help to victims of insurgency, especially with the renewed attacks on villages.

“Borno alone cannot handle the problems of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) because a lot of things needed to be done. The Federal Government will step in to provide support to the IDPs.

“The sub-committee was set up to gather data on the number of IDPs and infrastructure that were destroyed for government to intervene.

“The president is worried about the plight of the IDPs. That is why the Victim Support Fund was inaugurated. Our sub-committee was set up to get the details on the ground so that government can intervene,” Wuyep stated.

He said the sub-committee decided to visit Borno first because of the enormity of damage done by the insurgents in the state.

Meanwhile, the Boko Haram insurgents in four local government areas of Adamawa State have urged displaced residents of the captured communities to return to their communities, assuring them of safety.

Some of the trapped residents said the insurgents advised them to return to their communities as they would be more protected and secured in the “new Islamic caliphate than in Nigerian territories.”

Mallam Salisu Baba from Uba town said normal activities have started picking up in the captured territories as Boko Haram enjoined residents to go about their normal activities while asking them to open their shops for business.

The resident added that the Boko Haram insurgents have warned politicians not to try to hold any election in the state just as they vowed to frustrate any of such actions.

He added that the insurgents restated their resolve to capture the whole state in no distant time.

Baba said the insurgents have assured them of security and freedom, adding that unlike other parts of the state where curfew was imposed and people are prevented from riding motorcycles, the insurgents have assured residents of free movement anytime of the day and asked them to ride their motorcycles and go about their normal activities.

“The insurgents have assured people of total freedom and have been telling shop owners to open their shops, threatening that anyone who fails to open his shop will have the shop broken.

“Whenever the insurgents want any commodity, they pay for it. This encouraged meat sellers, tea sellers and others to open for business.

“They provided security during the market day of Uba town last Thursday while promising to continue to give traders and residents who come to the area utmost security as long as they comply with Islamic rules.

“They have opened one of the filling stations belonging to A.A Garba in Uba town as motorists troop to buy the commodity due to high demand,” Baba stated.

“Boko Haram has renamed Mubi town as its “Madinatul Islam” meaning the City of Islam as they took full control and established their authorities on the conquered town,” a trapped resident, Aliyu Bala, explained.

He said the insurgents have mounted checkpoints and were keeping vigil at every nook and cranny of the town.

However, it was gathered that despite assurances of safety and security to residents, thousands of the trapped residents of the town have been sneaking out for fear of the unknown.

Sunday Joshua Wugira, a lawyer, who went to Maiha town to pick his aged parents who fled to the town when Mubi was captured, said despite the assurance by the insurgents several trapped residents were still fleeing, including soldiers.

‘’I was in Maiha few hours ago, the pathetic plight of the people I saw, was simply beyond imagination. We were in commercial bus when some fleeing soldiers said we must adjust for them to get space in the bus to flee, which we objected.

‘’It’s unfortunate that even soldiers joined civilians to run away,” he said.

As part of measures to contain the security situation in Adamawa, the state Government has banned the operations of motorcycle in seven local government areas.

A statement by Mr. Phineas Elisha, the Director, Press and Public Affairs to Governor Bala Ngilari, urged the public and security operatives to ensure compliance.

The affected Local Governments are Hong, Gombi, Song, Girei, Numan, Demsa and Fufore.

In another development, the United Nations humanitarian chief, Valerie Amos, has allocated $3.5 million (about N580 million) from the UN Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) for humanitarian operations in Nigeria’s North East.

In a statement by the UN Resident and Humanitarian Co-ordinator for Nigeria, Daouda Toure, said “the humanitarian Country Team prioritised CERF funds to respond to protection, health and water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) needs of displaced people and host communities of North East Nigeria. The interventions will be implemented in Yobe and Borno states, which are currently bearing the brunt of the conflict in the region.”

The funds would cover components of the Nigeria Strategic Response Plan (SRP) for 2014 that have not attracted adequate funding, including $808,893 for health, $1.3 million for WASH and $1,437,815 for protection. Of the $93.4 million requested through the Nigeria SRP, only 13 per cent has been received so far.

The grant, Toure said, was part of a $75 million allocation from the second of two annual rounds of allocations from the CERF Underfunded Emergencies window which this year aimed to boost relief work in two of the world’s most neglected regions – the West African Sahel and the Horn of Africa.

The latest allocation brings total CERF funding for Nigeria in 2014 to $5 million. In September, CERF helped aid agencies in Nigeria to respond to the Ebola crisis with $1.5 million.

The CERF pools donor contribution in a single fund so that MONEY is available to start or continue urgent relief work. Since 2006, CERF has allocated more than $14.7 million to Nigeria as part of the response to various crises. These resources have helped save lives and strengthen the response capacity of the humanitarian community.

According to the most recent assessment by the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), more than 740,000 people have been displaced by violence between Boko Haram insurgents and security forces in Nigeria since January 2014.

The majority of the people have sought refuge within host communities where they face increasingly squalid health and sanitation conditions.

Source: Dailyindependent