My Encounter with Boko Haram Foot Soldiers – Barr Aisha Narrates Her Interesting Story Part 3
This is the continuation of My Encounter with Boko Haram Foot Soldiers Part 2.
A: Yes, the way some of them are doing things has not been the same way the original group was doing it. But the original group is still there. They are still very much around. Even among them, the original Jama’atu Ahlil Sunnah is calling the other ones Boko Haram. They will say they are not Boko Haram, the other ones are the Boko Haram.
I once asked them the difference between the two groups. They said the other group has deviated from the norms. They said government and politicians are buying them and using them to kill perceived opponents. They said there are people doing rituals in the name of Boko Haram. But they are all together in the bush. The whole thing is mixed up now.
But once the original group stops, every other one must stop because none can stand on its own again. I once asked them about the frequent spate of bombings when it was becoming too much. They said, “Mama, anywhere we bombed, we issue a statement claiming responsibility. The ones we did not do, we keep quiet.”
Q: Were the Chibok girls kidnapped by the original group?
A: All I know is that the Boko Haram group kidnapped the Chibok girls.
Q: From your close interaction with these boys, do you think they will agree to drop their arms, release every person in their custody and return to the larger society if government decides to grant them amnesty?
A: Let me ask you this question; are they not human beings? If they are human beings like you and I, why won’t they accept the offer of amnesty? This administration is willing to dialogue with them. I am sure the president would like to ask them what happened and I am sure the children will be willing to say it.
I was with them recently and they were asking me if the society will be willing to forgive them. I said why not if they will drop their arms and become good boys. If Nigeria and Nigerians can accommodate the OPC in the West, MASSOB in the East and the Niger Delta militants, why won’t they accommodate them?
Q: In all your visits to the forest to meet those boys, have you ever encountered any difficulty?
A: Of course, yes, I have encountered many difficulties. Once when I went out in search of the girls, there was one particular guy who nearly kidnapped the group I went with, but I just played along with him. Once you put a smile on their faces, your problem is over. God helped us and we came out of it successfully.
There was this other one that I do not like remembering. I was in the bush with them. They were asking me who to trust and who not to trust. They were eating the food I took to them and writing their names in Arabic inscription on the ground when, suddenly, one of them stood up and started insulting me.
He was eating the N20,000 suya I bought for them when something came over him and he started pouring abuses on me. He said as a lawyer who went to an English school, I was not supposed to be where they were. He threatened to shoot me if I talk again. Others were just eating their suya when their boss shouted at him to keep quiet.
After some minutes, one of them stood up and asked him, “Do you know the person you just insulted? What made you insult her?” He pulled his trigger and shot him thrice and his lifeless body fell down there. I was terrified. None of them cared about his corpse. They simply continued eating their suya. That was my worst moment.
There was another time I was with them in the bush. I didn’t know that they had some of their men on the top of the trees we were sitting under. I just heard someone shout ‘Allahu Akbar’ from the tree top. Suddenly, they started firing in that bush ceaselessly for about an hour. No one was willing to tell me what was going on.
Q: After the death of Muhammad Yusuf, did you ever see or meet Shekau in the bush?
A: No, I never met him.
Q: But you were seeing other commanders in the bush who you knew during the lifetime of Muhammad Yusuf…
A: Yes, I was meeting others and Shekau knew I was going to the bush to meet some of the boys.
Q: We understand Shekau is dead…
A: I am sorry, I won’t answer that question. I do not want to discuss that issue.
Q: How would you like to describe the new leadership of the group?
A: Well, it has been the same thing. They keep killing. How do you want me to describe them?
Q: Some people say Muhammad Yusuf was milder than Shekau because there weren’t many killings then. Do you agree with that belief?
A: Of course, that is true. Muhammad Yusuf was cool-headed. But you should also know that they are not responsible for all the killings. Some of the killings are politically motivated while others may be for economic reasons. When finally there is peace and the boys come into the open, Nigerians will hear from them. They will tell the world who and who were sending them to do what.
A: Yes, the way some of them are doing things has not been the same way the original group was doing it. But the original group is still there. They are still very much around. Even among them, the original Jama’atu Ahlil Sunnah is calling the other ones Boko Haram. They will say they are not Boko Haram, the other ones are the Boko Haram.
I once asked them the difference between the two groups. They said the other group has deviated from the norms. They said government and politicians are buying them and using them to kill perceived opponents. They said there are people doing rituals in the name of Boko Haram. But they are all together in the bush. The whole thing is mixed up now.
But once the original group stops, every other one must stop because none can stand on its own again. I once asked them about the frequent spate of bombings when it was becoming too much. They said, “Mama, anywhere we bombed, we issue a statement claiming responsibility. The ones we did not do, we keep quiet.”
Q: Were the Chibok girls kidnapped by the original group?
A: All I know is that the Boko Haram group kidnapped the Chibok girls.
Q: From your close interaction with these boys, do you think they will agree to drop their arms, release every person in their custody and return to the larger society if government decides to grant them amnesty?
A: Let me ask you this question; are they not human beings? If they are human beings like you and I, why won’t they accept the offer of amnesty? This administration is willing to dialogue with them. I am sure the president would like to ask them what happened and I am sure the children will be willing to say it.
I was with them recently and they were asking me if the society will be willing to forgive them. I said why not if they will drop their arms and become good boys. If Nigeria and Nigerians can accommodate the OPC in the West, MASSOB in the East and the Niger Delta militants, why won’t they accommodate them?
Q: In all your visits to the forest to meet those boys, have you ever encountered any difficulty?
A: Of course, yes, I have encountered many difficulties. Once when I went out in search of the girls, there was one particular guy who nearly kidnapped the group I went with, but I just played along with him. Once you put a smile on their faces, your problem is over. God helped us and we came out of it successfully.
There was this other one that I do not like remembering. I was in the bush with them. They were asking me who to trust and who not to trust. They were eating the food I took to them and writing their names in Arabic inscription on the ground when, suddenly, one of them stood up and started insulting me.
He was eating the N20,000 suya I bought for them when something came over him and he started pouring abuses on me. He said as a lawyer who went to an English school, I was not supposed to be where they were. He threatened to shoot me if I talk again. Others were just eating their suya when their boss shouted at him to keep quiet.
After some minutes, one of them stood up and asked him, “Do you know the person you just insulted? What made you insult her?” He pulled his trigger and shot him thrice and his lifeless body fell down there. I was terrified. None of them cared about his corpse. They simply continued eating their suya. That was my worst moment.
There was another time I was with them in the bush. I didn’t know that they had some of their men on the top of the trees we were sitting under. I just heard someone shout ‘Allahu Akbar’ from the tree top. Suddenly, they started firing in that bush ceaselessly for about an hour. No one was willing to tell me what was going on.
Q: After the death of Muhammad Yusuf, did you ever see or meet Shekau in the bush?
A: No, I never met him.
Q: But you were seeing other commanders in the bush who you knew during the lifetime of Muhammad Yusuf…
A: Yes, I was meeting others and Shekau knew I was going to the bush to meet some of the boys.
Q: We understand Shekau is dead…
A: I am sorry, I won’t answer that question. I do not want to discuss that issue.
Q: How would you like to describe the new leadership of the group?
A: Well, it has been the same thing. They keep killing. How do you want me to describe them?
Q: Some people say Muhammad Yusuf was milder than Shekau because there weren’t many killings then. Do you agree with that belief?
A: Of course, that is true. Muhammad Yusuf was cool-headed. But you should also know that they are not responsible for all the killings. Some of the killings are politically motivated while others may be for economic reasons. When finally there is peace and the boys come into the open, Nigerians will hear from them. They will tell the world who and who were sending them to do what.
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