TheCable

Ali Ndume, senator representing Borno south, has narrated how Boko Haram insurgents killed more than 70 people in one night during a raid on his hometown in Gwoza local government area.

Ndume disclosed this on Wednesday at a meeting organised by the senate committee on special duties and the North East Development Commission (NEDC) in Maiduguri.

According to the senator, he can’t go to his hometown because it is not safe.

“If the senate committee would take time during their stay to go round some of the camps and even the nearby Konduga local government area, we would all better appreciate what the people are facing,” he said.

“Even as a serving senator, I still cannot go to Gwoza my hometown because it is not safe.

“Our security operatives are trying their best, and we have to give it to them. But the situation is overwhelming. People are dying every day, either from attacks or as a result of hunger. We have lost many lives here.

“There was a time in my hometown, Gwoza, that about 75 elders, most of whom I know personally, were dragged by Boko Haram to the town’s abattoir and slaughtered like animals. Only two persons survived because their bodies were covered with other people’s’ blood and the assailants thought they were dead.

“In the same Gwoza, Boko Haram had in a single day lined up young men and summarily shot them dead. These were just some standout cases.”

Repeated attacks in the north have led to insecurity in states like Borno, despite the efforts of the military to bring the situation under control.

On July 29, gunmen opened fire on the convoy of the Borno governor on his way to some internally displaced persons (IDP) camps in the northern part of the state.

The attack on the governor came a few days after some humanitarian workers were executed by Boko Haram insurgents.