By Mohammed Askira
That the menace of the Boko Haram has remained a nagging nightmare to the average resident of the North-east, and by extension; other peace-loving Nigerians is better imagined than experienced.
Many innocent lives and valuable property are daily being lost while that part of the country remains a geo-political entity of fragile peace amidst dwindling economic fortunes and the murder of sleep in the erstwhile peaceful region.
Recently, the Bama Local Government Council recovered and buried 81 victims of the Boko Haram dumped by the insurgents in the Yadzaram River after the military recaptured the historic town from the dreaded sect.
More so, the Police alone, among the other segments of the society, that have tasted and are still tasting the bitter pill of the activities of the Boko Haram across the country, need at least N4 billion to rebuild its facilities destroyed by the insurgents in the North-east alone. This was disclosed by the Inspector-General of Police, Solomon Arase, at an interactive session with the House of Representatives Committee on Police Affairs in Abuja, recently.
Arase had told the meeting that since the emergence of insurgency in the country, no fewer than 56 police stations had been destroyed in the North-east region alone.
“A total of 56 police stations, formations and facilities have been destroyed by insurgents, the present devastative situation greatly constitutes a major challenge to the capacity of the police within the formations in the region,’’ he said.
The police boss said that the destruction of the facilities had also affected the communication process of the police, which is crucial to the fight against insurgency in the area.
“The enormous devastating effect of the menace of insurgents, popularly known as Boko Haram, is better said than imagined,’’ Arase concluded.
If the police; as an institution charged with the responsibility of checking crime in the society, can barely keep its head above waters; what can the Borno Assembly, which is charged with the promulgation of laws, do to tackle the issue and keep its people together?
Those who live to tell their tales of Boko Haram do so either as orphans or sexually abused victims that have been traumatized; left with psychological and physical scars that can never be erased; at least not in this lifetime.
As the House continues to debate and explore ways to end the nightmare and ensure normalcy within its mandate, the Speaker, Borno State House of Assembly, Hon. Abdulkarim Lawan, is quick to remind the people that neither him nor the House is daunted by the enormous challenges of terminating the insurgent activities even if it means stepping outside the scope of its legislative duties.
Lawan, who is also the acting Chairman, Conference of Nigerian Speakers, said that the forum had swung into action by embarking on mobilisation of other speakers to discuss security issues with a view to finding lasting solutions to the Boko Haram menace.
Realising the fact that lack of education has been as one of the factors that created the monster that is Boko Haram; the speaker, in a desperate attempt to fill in the gaps ensured that the House passed a bill seeking for the establishment of the state university; as well as the bill on girl-child education.
It is no secret that the speaker has been awarding personal scholarships to students of his constituency in higher institutions across the country.
It is also in the public domain that Lawan, who continues to raise alarm at the frightening rate of unemployment; which has also contributed to fueling the crisis, had in the last few years purchased and distributed more than 50 18-seater buses, 300 Rickshaws (Keke Napep); as well as 200 salon cars for commercial purposes aimed at empowering the people economically.
The speaker, who was also instrumental to the establishment of training acquisition centres in the three senatorial zones of the state, had at various fora expressed his determination to positively engage youths in the state to shield them from indulging in crime and criminality.
The speaker’s efforts have not gone unnoticed as political analysts say the speaker is steering a heavy ship, in form of the House, which is helping it keep its head above the murky waters that are threatening to drown the people of Borno and destroy the region as a whole.
Murtala Yaro, a political analyst who spoke on the speaker’s efforts said such individual contributions would encourage Boko Haram to sheath their swords and engage government in constructive dialogue for the restoration of peace to the hitherto peaceful North-east and the country in general.
Yaro said economic empowerment has been recognized as an effective tool in managing crises, notably; insurgency.
“No matter the gravity of crisis; political, economic or otherwise, economic empowerment, coupled with dialogue, is always a means to an end in crisis situation, particularly; insurgency, ’’ he said.
Askira wrote from Maiduguri, Borno state.
