Troops arrest Boko Haram financier in Borno

The Acting Director, Army Public Relations, Col. Sani Usman, said on Tuesday that troops had arrested a financier of the Boko Haram insurgents in Borno State. Usman said in a statement that that the man, identified as Mohammed Maina, was arrested in Bama with N1m cash on him. He said that the suspect was also a supplier of kola nuts and other stimulants to the insurgents. The Army spokesman said that the suspect, a native of Shuari Village in Bama Local Government Area, might have been collecting monetary contributions from Boko Haram sympathisers along the Maiduguri-Dikwa-Kulli axis of the state. “In a related development, troops have also intercepted and arrested a suspected Boko Haram financier and stimulants dealer, Mohammed Maina, in Bama, Bama Local Government Area of Borno State. “The suspect, a native of Ngurosoye, came from Shuari village in Bama LGA, and he was arrested with the sum of N1m cash and some items. “Investigation revealed that Mohammed supplies them kola nuts and other items especially stimulants. He further revealed that kola nuts are in high demand among the terrorists, as the product keeps them active at night. “It is apparent also that he plies Maiduguri-Dikwa- Kulli axis where he gathers monetary and other material contributions from Boko Haram sympathisers along that axis and send same to the terrorists camps,” the statement read in part. Usman stated also that the soldiers of the 112 Battalion and some Special Forces carried out a joint raid on Boko Haram’s camps at Bulungwa Naibe in Dikwa Local Government Area of Borno State on Monday and recovered some items from them. He stated also that several of the insurgents were killed in the operation. He said that the items recovered from them included “one Buffalo vehicle mounted with an anti-aircraft gun, a rocket-propelled grenade, two machine guns and one sub-machine gun, five AK-47, one Fabrique nationale rifle and two sewing machines used for sewing uniforms by the terrorists.” Usman also said that soldiers had arrested three suspected collaborators of the Boko Haram insurgents following the arrest of Maina. Usman said that Maina had been making useful statements which led to the arrest of the three suspected collaborators in Maiduguri. He gave the names of those arrested as Jikana Alhaji Goni, 29, Alhaji Musa Modu, 37, and Alhaji Aba’ana Na Sule, aged 40, all of Hausari Ward, Maiduguri. He said that those arrested were being interrogated by the military. He said, “Please recall that a Boko Haram financier, fund raiser and stimulant supplier, Mohammed Maina, was arrested by troops of 21 Brigade yesterday.” Meanwhile, the Emir of Ilorin, Alhaji Ibrahim Sulu- Gambari, on Tuesday urged security agencies and the Federal Government to smoke out all identified sponsors of Boko Haram insurgency in the country. Noting that terrorists had wrecked havoc in the country, he said he was hopeful that terrorism would soon come to an end as soon as the sponsors were identified. He spoke in an interview with members of the Correspondent Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital. The Emir also advised President Muhammadu Buhari not to discard the report of the 2014 National Conference. He urged Buhari to begin the process of implementing the 2014 National Conference report and to restructure the country. Sulu-Gambari, who was a member of the confab, said Nigeria needed restructuring to accelerate its growth. He urged Buhari to pass the report as a bill to the National Assembly so that it would form part of the nation’s constitution and law. He said, “The law is made for the people and people are not made for the law. The Nigerian people have gathered for a purpose and the people have spoken through their representatives. So, the parliament would have to endorse it for necessary criteria that had been drawn up in the constitution. “Having done that, it will now be passed as a bill and the people of Nigeria can now say they have given unto themselves a constitution. The one given to us by the military was not by the people of this country. “The military only gave us that one to guide and rule us. Men are not supposed to be made for the law, but rather, laws are supposed to be made for man. Men should be supreme. “The constitution is the highest norm or law in the land so that whatever may happen since we are still in the period of restructuring, probably the document gathered during the confab should be looked into as part of documents for restructuring. I believe it should not be thrown into the dustbin.” The Emir urged journalists to be socially responsible at every critical moment in their reportage. He added that they should through their reportage protect the corporate existence of Nigeria, and avoid any report that could undermine the corporate existence of the country. He also said he was excited that the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, is from Kwara State. He added that Saraki will render quality service for national growth and unity. He said, “We have gone far enough as a country. And we should see anything that happens as part of happenings of something in the embryo or still growing because we are still growing with a lot to learn from our mistakes. We should not stop existing as a country. “Your job should be tailored towards securing peace and harmony in the country, alongside other responsibilities of educating, informing and entertaining people. Without peace, you cannot do all these. We pray God to continue to give us peace and put an end to Boko Haram attacks in the country.”