A ‘repentant’ Boko Haram member was responsible for the murder of an Army Colonel, D.C Bako, Borno State senator, Ali Ndume, has claimed.
The member, he said, gave out information to the terrorists regarding the movement of the colonel. Colonel Bako was killed on September 21 in an ambush by the terrorist group, near Damboa, a town about 85 kilometres from Maiduguri, the Borno State capital.
Confirming his death, the Nigerian Army described D.C Bako as “one of our gallant and finest war heroes.”
Senator Ndume, who is the chairman of the Senate Committee on Army, made the revelation to journalists on Wednesday shortly after the budget defence session of the Nigerian Army.
The lawmaker was responding to questions bothering on the funding of the army, as well as the committee’s position on the reintegration of repentant Boko Haram members back into the communities – an idea which he said is wrong.
“I am in disagreement with the government on the issue of de-radicalising and reintegrating (Boko Haram repentants). I still maintain that. You can’t be resettling people, pampering them while the war is on. The committee is on the same page and I believe many Nigerians are on the same page with this.
“In my village, mallams, not ordinary Muslims but mallams, elders above 60, 75 of them were taken to an abattoir and slaughtered by Boko Haram. Can you imagine that the Nigerian army or the Nigerian government is saying that because these people have gone to repent, or they say they have their hands up, you bring them back and pamper them.
“In addition to that, the recent attack in Damboa was carried out by a repentant (Boko Haram) giving information as to the movement of the army, the general that was killed was a victim,” said the lawmaker, who appeared emotional as he spoke, apparently mixing up the title of the deceased officer. The only ambush and killing of a senior army officer reported recently was that of Mr Bako in Damboa, Borno State, in September.
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Crime