The Borno State Government has dismissed reports alleging that ransom was paid before the release of 360 abductees rescued from the Mandara Mountains, a known terrorist enclave in the southern part of the state.
The Commissioner for Information and Internal Security, Usman Tar, stated this on Monday during an appearance on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief.
On Sunday, Operation Hadin Kai announced the rescue of the abductees from a Jama’atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda’awati wal-Jihad enclave in the Mandara Mountains.
The Acting Media Information Officer of Operation Hadin Kai, Lieutenant Colonel Haruna Sani, had said the operation was carried out by Special Forces and troops of Sector 1 after weeks of intelligence gathering, covert reconnaissance and detailed operational planning.
According to the military, the rescued victims, comprising men, women and children, had been held under harsh conditions after being abducted from several communities, particularly around the Ngoshe axis.
Reacting to claims that ransom may have been paid, Tar insisted that the release was the outcome of a daring military operation backed by intelligence support from the Department of State Services.
“Who paid the ransom? And the ransom was paid to who? Where is the evidence?” he asked.
“We are the operatives on the ground. There was no ransom payment. There was a daring military operation with intelligence support from the DSS that led to the rescue of the 360 citizens. That is the fact on the ground. If there are any counter facts, then you can pursue that.”
The commissioner said the state government would continue to treat Boko Haram and other armed groups as criminal organisations terrorising innocent citizens.
He noted that although the Boko Haram insurgency began with an ideological agenda, it had since evolved into what he described as a criminal enterprise driven by abduction, extortion and exploitation.
“The Boko Haram insurgency started as a result of the ideological mindset of a few individuals who started the campaigns,” Tar said.
“But those individuals have gone. The Boko Haram insurgency has since transmuted into a big business. So that is what is going on right now. And there is no other explanation.”
Tar said while members of the public may hold different views about the nature of the insurgency, the position of the Borno State Government is that the state is dealing with criminals determined to vandalise, criminalise and terrorise communities.
“As far as we are concerned, we are dealing with criminals, who are out to vandalise, criminalise and terrorise our people, and we are not going to rest on our oars,” he said.
The government’s denial comes amid public debate over the circumstances surrounding the release of the 360 abductees, which the military described as one of the major hostage rescue operations in the North-East theatre in recent times.
