Bitter slice of life in Boko Haram-controlled territories

Life in the villages and towns controlled by Boko Haram group is unbearable, as Malam Amadu Ibrahim, one of the Nigerians that have relocated to the Niger Republic from Kangarwa village in Abadam local government area of Borno State, says. Over 12,000 Nigerians mostly women and children from Abadam, Marte, Damasa, Baga and Kukawa local […]

Life in the villages and towns controlled by Boko Haram group is unbearable, as Malam Amadu Ibrahim, one of the Nigerians that have relocated to the Niger Republic from Kangarwa village in Abadam local government area of Borno State, says. Over 12,000 Nigerians mostly women and children from Abadam, Marte, Damasa, Baga and Kukawa local government areas of Borno State have relocated to various villages in Diffa Province of Niger Republic after the sect invaded their villages.
Ibrahim, who spoke to our reporter in Bosso town, Diffa, said it is an offence punishable by death for a member of the captured community to relocate to another village that is not under the insurgents’ control, adding that the punishment is executed in public to serve as deterrent. He further stated that any resident who leaves Boko Haram-controlled territory has his or her belongings shared among other residents.
Sambo (not real name) is another escapee and he said farmers residing in villages controlled by insurgents are allowed to cultivate farms and harvest crops. However, they will not be allowed to take a single grain out of the village or the market. Rather, insurgents direct them to stock the grains in silos. In the event a farmer sneaks out, their produce will also be considered forfeited and shared among other residents.
Sambo also said that to any Muslim with a daughter of 13 and above residing in their territory, they give an ultimatum of two weeks to either marry her off to her chosen suitor or they would marry her off to whoever they wish. “But for Christians, they would just seize the girl, convert her to Islam and marry her off to one of them,” he said.
Sambo also disclosed that the insurgents also seize belongings of members of the community, including motorbikes, cars and foodstuff, even killing them at the slightest provocation and abducting their young daughters, taking them to unknown destinations.
Also, according to the insurgents’ rules, any village that forms a ‘Civilian JTF’ or participates in the activities of such a group would be classified as non-Muslims and stand to be attacked. This has caused a lot of distress to many residents within the five affected local governments. One of the refugees, Yunusa Isa, 65, said occupants of villages that form vigilante groups are being rejected by other communities for fear of Boko Haram.
The insurgents do virtually everything in the captured communities. They are the Chief Imams of the mosques, the judges, etc. Asked about the presence of security personnel around the captured territories, Sambo said there was none at all. “They all fled when the insurgents attacked,” he said.
Although life in Bosso is not the same as in Boko Haram-controlled territories, Nigerians are facing serious difficulties in Niger Republic. Most of them cannot get three square meals in a day. They only eat twice when they are able to get some assistance from others.
The common meal in the refugee camps are Gari, ground maize and others. Vegetable oil is also playing an important role in those camps, as virtually all the meals prepared are doused with it before consumption.
At one of the camps visited in Kaulawa village, a female refugee, Malama Hadiza Garba said children are fed with seeds, as they don’t have food. “After we have collected the seeds from plants in the bush, we wash them thoroughly, remove outer layers and dry them under the sun. We will then remove the hard shells of the seeds and cook the inner part with groundnut oil. We normally eat this as a dinner because it is not heavy.” She added that they buy pap and Akara in the morning if they have money, otherwise, they warm leftovers to feed the children.
The refugees are threatened by malaria, cholera and other ailments as many children in most of the camps visited are battling with them. Some health personnel sponsored by the International Rescue Committee set up by the French government are rendering healthcare services to sick refugees but it appears that the situation needs more.
For the lucky refugees accommodated by the host community, 14 to 20 people sleep in a single room meant for four, while the unlucky ones sleep in makeshift structures made from poles and thatch in open spaces around.
The military, under the auspices of the Multi-National Joint Task Force, are patrolling the Niger-Nigeria borders on a daily basis and a military jet could also be seen flying past the border towns where the refugees are. Also at the borders, Nigerien security personnel are conducting rigorous searches to ensure no-one smuggles weapons into refugee camps in their country.
Altine Muhammad, an indigene of Bosso told Weekly Trust that the refugees were allowed to convert an abandoned graveyard into a camp because of their urgent need. “When the government realized that the houses of the host community were full, it ordered for the thatch structures to be made for refugees.”
Malam Garba Dauda, 75, is a father of eight and he also relocated to Bosso from Kangarwa village in Abadam local government. “I thank God I am still alive, but we are really suffering here. The unfortunate thing is that we don’t know for how long we will be in this kind of situation or when the Federal Government will come to our rescue. Up till this moment, not a single government official has visited us from Nigeria.”
Dauda said although authorities in Niger republic are doing their best in relieving them, “The Nigerian government is in the best position to assist us, since we are Nigerians.” He lamented that months after their relocation to Niger Republic, the Nigerian government has not rendered any assistance to them.
Tafida (not real name) is another refugee, and he says he relocated to Bosso with his family because the Nigerian government doesn’t care about them. “We were left at the mercy of the insurgents, who kill at will and loot whenever they like.”
The refugee said: “I first relocated to Dogon-Cuku and while I was there my neighbor was killed in my presence and all his properties were taken over by the insurgents. So I became terrified by that incident and therefore relocated to Niger Republic. It is horrific in Boko Haram captured villages as no-one is sure of safety. The insurgents regularly abduct young girls, youths and even married women. They are not consistent, in that they could announce a rule in the afternoon and change it the next morning,” he said, adding that defaulters often face bullets. “We’ve lost hope,” he sighed.