YOLA— FEW hours after the Federal Government gave the military
marching orders to flush out Boko Haram insurgents from Mubi, the commercial
nerve centre and second largest town in Adamawa State, the terrorists,
yesterday, defiantly renamed the town ‘Madinatul Islam’, which means the city
of Islam.
Four local governments of Michika,
Madagali, Mubi North and Mubi South of Adamawa State are now in the firm grip
of the insurgents, throwing up thousands of internally displaced persons.
Trapped residents of the town who
spoke on telephone confirmed that the insurgents firmly in control have renamed
the town and have also set up check-points in strategic locations. The
terrorists were also said to have urged all the residents who fled to return as
they would be more secure in the areas controlled by Boko Haram than in
Nigerian territories.
Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Air
Marshal Alex Badeh
A trapped resident, Aliyu Bala, who
spoke on telephone said: “They (insurgents) mounted check-points in strategic
locations, brandishing rifles but asking us not to panic or run away. But
despite assurances of safety and security, thousands of the trapped residents
have been sneaking out as they said they would not risk staying in the town for
fear of the unknown.”
A resident of Uba town, Mallam
Salisu Baba, however, said normal activities have started picking up in the
captured territories as Boko Haram enjoined residents to go about their normal
activities while asking them to open their shops for business.
He said: “The insurgents have also
warned politicians not to try to hold any election in the state as they vowed
to frustrate any of such actions and restated their resolve to capture the
whole state in no distant time.”
Baba said the insurgents have
assured them of security and freedom. He added that unlike other parts of the
state where curfew was imposed and people were prevented from riding
motorcycles, the insurgents have assured residents of free movement any time of
the day and asked them to ride their motorcycles and go about their normal
activities.
According to him: “The insurgents
have assured people of freedom and have been telling shop owners to open their
shops, threatening that anyone who fails to open his shop will have the shop
broken. Whenever the insurgents want any commodity, they pay for it. This
encouraged meat sellers, tea sellers and others to open for business.
“They provided security during the
market day of Uba town last Thursday while promising to continue to give market
owners and residents who come to the area utmost security as long as they
comply with Islamic rules. They have opened one of the filling stations
belonging to A.A Garba in Uba town as motorists trooped to buy the commodity
due to high demand,” Baba said.
Yola-based legal practitioner,
Sunday Joshua Wugirawho, who went to Maiha town to pick up his aged parents who
fled to the town when Mubi was captured, said despite the assurance by the
insurgents, several trapped residents were still fleeing, including soldiers.
“I was in Maiha few hours ago. The
pathetic plight of the people I saw was simply beyond imagination. We were in a
commercial bus when some fleeing soldiers said we must adjust for them to get
space in the bus, and we had no choice than to oblige. It’s unfortunate that
even soldiers joined civilians to run away,” he said.
Boko Haram on rampage in Gombe,
attacks police station
Meanwhile, gunmen suspected to be
Boko Haram insurgents, yesterday, launched an attack on the police station in
Nafada Local Government Area of Gombe State. The gunmen also took over the
premises of a strategic cement manufacturing company in Gombe State, shortly
after killing five people including a Sheikh in a neighbouring town.
According to workers at Ashaka
Cement factory, the heavily armed militants came in convoys of pick-up vans and
started shooting indiscriminately at workers after the security guards at the
company fled into the bush.
Police officers attached to the
Nafada station were said to have been overpowered as some of the officers
reportedly fled on sighting the insurgents who had superior fire power.
NATIONAL COUNCIL OF STATE—From left:
Former President Shehu Shagari, former President Olusegun Obasanjo; former Head
of State, Yakubu Gowon; Senate President, David Mark; Justice Minister,
Mohammed Bello and President Goodluck Jonathan during the opening of the
National Council of State meeting at Aso Chambers, State House, Abuja,
yesterday. Photo: Abayomi Adeshida.
Arms and ammunition were believed to
have been looted from the station.
Spokesperson of the Command, Fwaje
Atajiri, confirmed there were reports of attacks in Nafada, and that
reinforcement had been sent there. He however said details of the incident were
still sketchy.
30 killed, 89 injured in Yobe bomb
attack — hospital
In a related development, Executive
Secretary of Yobe Hospitals Management Board, Dr Mamman Mohammed, has confirmed
that 30 persons died while 89 others were injured in last Monday bomb attack in
Potiskum, Yobe State.
He told Governor Ibrahim Gaidam, who
paid a visit to the victims at the Potiskum General Hospital that some of the
victims with severe injuries have been referred to tertiary health institutions
in Azare and Nguru.
Gaidam directed that free treatment
be given to the victims, saying “the government will bear all the medical bills
of the victims, including those referred to other hospitals outside the state.”
He also condoled with the Shi’ite
group on the death of their members. Members of the group were presumably
attacked by a suicide bomber while on a procession.
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