By Akinsuroju Olubunmi
Abducted Borno IDPs: Nine return home
Nine out of the 102 Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) from Gamboru-Ngala, Borno State, who were reportedly taken by Boko Haram insurgents while gathering firewood in the bush on Sunday, March 4, have managed to find their way back home.
Initial reports from various media outlets, corroborated by local sources and the United Nations, confirmed the abduction of the young IDPs by the terrorists. However, the Borno State government dismissed the abduction claims, suggesting instead that the individuals had simply lost their way back home from the wilderness.
“We don’t even believe that they were abducted,” stated Dr. Barkindo Mohammed Saidu, the Director-General of Borno State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), who led a fact-finding mission to Ngala following the reported incident.
According to Dr. Saidu, “We believe they only lost their way back home, not abducted, because if they were abducted, the abductors would have, by now, called for ransom; but nobody has demanded any ransom yet.”
As of Sunday, March 10, no ransom demands had been made for the release of the individuals, reinforcing the state government’s belief that they had not been abducted.
“We have received reliable information that nine out of the ‘missing’ IDPs managed to return to the camp last Friday, March 8,” Dr. Saidu disclosed, emphasizing the need for increased vigilance to monitor any further returns.
Dr. Saidu reiterated the state government’s skepticism about the abduction narrative, citing a lack of trust between the IDPs, government agencies, and NGOs.
“We don’t believe the IDPs in this abduction narrative and the numbers quoted,” he asserted. “The IDPs are not trustworthy. There is no trust between them and government and between them and NGOs.”
He added, “This is why we don’t even believe the abduction story and the numbers quoted.”
Military updates regarding the situation with the IDPs were not immediately available from the spokesperson for the 7 Division, Lt. Col. Ajemusu Jingina.
Borno IDPs, abduction