Gov Babagana Zulum of Borno State has raised concerns that some notorious leaders of the deadly group, Boko Haram group, who are currently incarcerated, may have escaped from the state’s correctional facility after a devastating flood hit Maiduguri, the state’s capital.
The extent of the damage caused by the flood, resulted in fatalities and the loss of properties which are valued in millions of naira.
Reports also have it that the flood damaged a section of the old prison, where many prisoners were relocated to the newly constructed maximum security prison in Maiduguri.
There have been speculations in some quarters that prisoners are being evacuated and some of them escaping following the recent flood incidents.
Speaking in an interview with BBC, when asked about his concerns regarding the escape of Boko Haram leaders, Governor Zulum confirmed that he was indeed worried about it.
The Borno State Governor said: “I’m worried, yes, I’m seriously worried. But you also have to bear in mind that the Borno State Government has established what we call the Borno Model of Rehabilitation, which has allowed many insurgents to repent. Within the last two years, over 200,000 Boko Haram members and their families have repented and I think this has also yielded positive results in ensuring the return of peace and stability to Borno State.”
Zulum decried how the state witnessed another calamity amid its challenging security situation.
“I can remember more than 300,000 people were killed in Borno State, thousands of classrooms were destroyed, the insurgency destroyed hundreds of facilities.
“We are just trying to get out of this problem, and then we witnessed another disaster—a very serious calamity, another serious humanitarian crisis that the state governor cannot shoulder,” the governors stated, adding that the support given to the flood victims was “never enough”.
“There is no way we can provide food to millions of people in one or two hours. So, what we decided is to retreat and organise ourselves. The only way we can organise ourselves is to ensure that the affected victims are resettled in camps. Then we will take the support to the camps; otherwise, many will die as a result of receiving food and non-food items in queues,
” he said.
