By Emneka Nze
Abuja
An elder statesman from Southern Borno and one of the early campaigners for Nigeria’s independence, Elder Paul Bassi, yesterday disclosed that there is no federal or state government presence in Southern Borno that was ravaged by the Boko Haram insurgents.
Bassi, who spoke at the reunion summit of delegates to the 2014 National Conference in Abuja, further challenged the federal government to produce the Chibok girls since it claimed that the forest had been captured.
Bassi, who disclosed that he had not returned home since March 2014, dispelled media reports that the Southern Borno region of the state was undergoing rehabilitation, noting that there was neither federal nor state presence going on in there.
“Southern Borno has been destroyed. I will like to say that at the present time the people of North east are all over distressed. The beautiful pictures painted in the news media are not true. Since March 2014, I have not returned to my home in Southern Borno.
“People tell us that Sambisa forest has been captured, if it is true, where are the girls, where are they hiding. We either admit that forest has not be captured or that the girls are somewhere else.
While he pleaded for more moral support for the people in the region, he also asked for material support.
“We need to fashion out a way of coming to the North east and see that we are rehabilitated. No one will go back to southern Borno until there is order and law there. There is No government functioning there it is just names.
On the rebuild of Southern Borno, he said “nobody can go and show one contracted by federal government or state government in Southern Borno.
“There is no functioning IDP camp in all the local governments of southern Borno. But when they talk about displaced people they are all from Southern Borno.
“But all the ongoing reconstruction is in Northern Borno. There is nothing going on in southern Borno. I am ready to take you there If we they can allow us move freely.
There is nothing going on there, the federal and state government are not doing anything.”
He pledged the commitment of the North east to the 2014 confab resolution.
He added “in Southern Borno we want to be free to manage our affairs.”
