Suffering, indeed, is an equalizer in
the human experience. It knows
neither rich nor poor, religion nor
ethnicity.
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It was tears, sadness and gratitude
to God, all at once as some victims
of the Boko Haram insurgency in
Nigeria’s North-East recounted
their experiences to Sunday
Vanguard in Adamawa State
recently. Some of the experiences
were reminiscent of experiences of
non-Nazis in Nazi Germany.
At St. Theresa’s Cathedral, Yola
where some displaced persons had
gone to get foodstuffs and receive
medical care courtesy of the
Catholic Diocese of Yola in
conjunction with the American
University of Nigeria, individuals,
organisations and societies within
the church, Sunday Vanguard spoke
with some of the displaced persons
who told their story of torture in
the hands of the insurgents and
eventual escape.
Cecilia Sumaila from Madagali said:
“When the Boko Haram insurgents
came to my house, they met me and
said they have been looking for me
and I asked them why?
They said they want me to convert to
Islam and I told them I could never
do that. They said ok, if they cannot
convert me to Islam, then they would
kill me.
They tied my hands and legs behind
and said they will take me to
Sambisa forest and slaughter me and
my children will never see me again.
So everyone at home was kneeling
and crying, including my mother in-
law who held my feet and said they
will not take me anywhere.
They were crying and begging that I
should not be taken away but they
insisted, saying I am very stubborn
because I refused to convert to
Islam.
They placed me on their motorcycle
and for about two hours, they were
threatening to take me to Sambisa
and slaughter me but I insisted I
was not going to convert. In the end,
they said if not for my mother-in-
law, they would have slaughtered
me. They released me and I ran
away and eventually came to Yola.”
Were they from Madagali?
“We see them in their long attires
and guns going around town.”
Martina Ibrahim from Gulak: “When
they came to my house, they met
four of us, so they asked if we are
Christians or Moslems and we said
we are Christians so they said we
should follow them so they could
convert us to Islam. They took four of
us to a big house still in Gulak.
Fortunately, one of the women being
held there helped me escape. She
helped me to climb the wall and I
scaled the wall to freedom. Sadly, I
don’t know whether the woman
eventually escaped or she is still
there in captivity. I don’t know
where my husband and children are,
whether they are alive or dead, I
can’t say.”
Elizabeth Chutsi from Bazza: “It was
on a Sunday and some soldiers told
us to leave because Boko Haram
insurgents were coming. I just came
back from the stream and entered a
neighbour’s house to say hello.
There was an aluminium pot on the
fire but she was not around, so I
was asking where she could have
gone leaving her pot on fire. As I
was coming out of the kitchen, two
members of the Boko Hara sect came
in with two turkeys and two
chickens.
They asked why I did not run and I
said I was having stomach ache.
They said I should not be afraid,
that I should stay there and kill the
turkeys and chickens and cook for
them. So I asked them to allow me
go and get my children so we could
all do the job and they said I should
go. I was walking as if I was going to
drop dead at any moment.
They had guns and cutlasses. As I
opened the door, I saw some youths
firing shots at some rocks. Those two
were still in the house waiting for
me to return. I went behind the hill
and ran away.”
Mary from Michika:
“When the insurgents came, they
were searching houses, looking for
men. They would enter a house, ask
for the men and if they found none,
they would leave and enter the next
house.
After I locked my house, I came back
to see that they had broken down
the door and entered to search
again. They found nothing. We
became afraid and I told some of my
neighbours (women) that there was
no point staying there, that it was
better for us to run. So we left for
Michika.
Two days after we arrived in Michika,
the insurgents started coming that
way.
We were afraid and I told the
women that we should go back to
Gulak. We all went to Gulak and
spent one night. By 10 am the
following day, some insurgents came
and took us away. We were 10
women.
They took us to a big house. They
were speaking Kanuri language and,
fortunately, I understand the
language. They were saying they
needed to carry us to Sambisa as
quickly as possible because another
set was coming.
I was in the midst of about 40 other
women and I was the only Christian.
I knelt down and was praying to God
to intervene. They were speaking
Kanuri language and laughing. So I
stood up to speak to them.
My neighbour asked if I was not
afraid of them and I said no, that I
wanted to speak to them, after all,
our staying there was death already
because, at the end of the day, they
would take us to Sambisa. I raised
my hand and they asked if I had
something to say and I said yes.
I spoke to them in Kanuri, telling
them that I left my young children
at home and no one was looking
after them and since they said they
were going to take care of us, they
should allow me to go and get them
so we could all be together.
They asked where my husband was
and I told them he was on
admission in a Kano hospital. They
allowed me to go and get the
children. That was how I escaped to
Yola through Kamale. My children
were already in Yola at this time.
Kiviana John from Gulak. “When
this crisis happened in Madagali, we
were deceived into believing that it
will never get to Gulak. But as days
went by, people began to pack
foodstuff to hide in the forest.
As a widow, I had no one to help
me, so a kind-hearted neighbour
helped me to take two bags of
guinea corn. Shortly after, the
insurgents entered Gulak and people
began to flee into the bush.
We were in the bush for one week
without food. One day, my sister said
we should go and look for food as
others were doing since the children
were hungry and sick. She insisted
we go and look for food. We decided
to go to Gulak because my children
were really hungry and sick.
We went in the night and got the
food quite alright but on our way
back to the bush, some insurgents
sighted us, arrested us and were
forcing us to go with them to their
camp.
By this time, my mother-in-law had
taken my children away from me so I
didn’t even know where they were.
The insurgents asked one of them on
motorcycle to lead us to their camp.
As he rode slowly and we followed
behind, he was cursing us, calling us
heathens whom Allah had sent them
to save but we prefer darkness to
light. ‘You heathens, we want to
make you clean and show you the
light so that you will follow the way
of truth but you prefer darkness, we
will deal with you.’
I said no problem, if death comes
while following Christ, no problem
but I will not abandon my faith for
Islam.
The other women with me could not
utter a word. I told them to say
something, that even if we are to
face death, we should die in Christ.
He went ahead of us on his bike as
we followed behind.
Whenever he look back, we would
hasten our steps and whenever he
turned his face away from us, we
would slow down. At a point, he
turned into a corner and could not
see us.
We quickly dropped the foodstuff to
save our lives. We ran into a tomb
and stayed for some time. They were
looking for us all over the place and
when they could not find us, they
left, that was how God saved us and
we escaped being taken to their
camp.”
Yohanna Haman works as the chief
security officer of St Pius Catholic
Church, Shuwa in Madagali Local
Government Area. His story was like
a scene from a James Bond movie.
His words: “This happened in
September. I was at the gate when
some Muslim brothers came to us
and asked us to leave the compound
and run away.
We did not listen to them because
they were military people and they
came in their armoured car. They
told us to leave because insurgents
were on their way to the area. They
said I should lock the gate and leave
because if they met me there, they
will kill me.
They then escaped in their
armoured. They had weapons but
they all escaped. I refused to leave.
I went into the church and told my
parish priest what the soldiers said.
The priest said we should leave
because Boko Haram had already
entered Gulak. He came out and saw
the soldiers escaping.
He asked if I was going home and I
assured him I was not going to leave
him there all alone for the love of
Christ. Within 30 minutes, we
started hearing gunshots and bombs
exploding at Gulak. We spent the
night in the church.
On Saturday, some people came to
the church and asked me to leave
because the insurgents were looking
for us. I told them I was going
nowhere. I told my priest and he left
for Michika saying if I hear gunshots,
I should escape. After he left, I was
all alone in the parish. I spent the
night there.
The following day being Sunday, by
7.30am, the priest called me and
said he was on his way back to the
church; so I went to dress the altar
for service. When he came and
started the mass, I told him to
continue, that I was going to stay
outside to keep watch and if I see
the insurgents coming or hear
gunshots, I’d let him know.
Within 30 minutes, the mass,
attended by 15 people, was over and
the priest told me he was going to
outstation. I was once again alone in
the church. Within 30 minutes, the
insurgents came. They blocked the
whole road and nobody could go out.
As soon as I sighted them, God
helped me to quickly lock the gate
and stayed within the parish until
6.30pm when I scaled the wall to
escape, I found out they had taken
over the road so there was no way I
could cross to my house without
being seen.
I went to the bush behind my house
where I stayed till 2.30am and then
scaled the fence into a neighbour’s
compound and stayed. At about
5.25am, I went back into the bush
and, from there, climbed back into
the church premises. I went into the
priest’s sitting room and locked
myself inside.
Within a short time, the insurgents
came through St. Joseph’s Minor
Seminary, Shuwa, and surrounded
the seminary and came to our parish
and surrounded it also.
I heard gunshots, they were shooting
the padlock, trying to enter the
church premises but they could not.
They decided to find another means
of breaking the gate to gain
entrance into the church. At this
point, I opened the sitting room
door and came out.
I saw one of them outside the gate,
so I took the opposite direction and
jumped into the convent. Some of
them saw me and pursued me.
I scaled the fence. They began
following on motorcycle and shooting
at me. It was a miracle that I was
not hit by bullets. I fell on the
ground and they felt I was dead, so
they left me. Later, I found my way
out of Shuwa.
Barnabas Paul Mbiya from Michika:
“When the insurgents attacked
Gulak, we were not aware they were
coming to Michika but people were
running up and down. I even took
my family to the mountainous area
and left them there and came back
home to sleep. We were only three
in the whole area. I saw soldiers
arriving that evening and that
boosted my confidence to stay.
On Sunday, we went to church; after
service, my sister called me from
Shuwa to say insurgents were in
Shuwa and that I should find my
way out; so I told some of my friends
that we should leave the town. I
went home and packed a few things
and my documents and tied on my
motorcycle.
I left every other thing in the house
including my animals and about 60
chickens. As I coming out, the
insurgents entered Michika, they
were pursuing soldiers because at
that point, they were not concerned
about civilians, only security agents.
The soldiers asked me to go back but
I refused because if I went back, the
insurgents would attack me. I
decided to climb the mountain.
We spent three days on the
mountain with no food. On the third
day, I decided to go down and find
my way to Yola. People were telling
me not to go down but I had made
up my mind. I took my family and
went down and, from there, we paid
N2,000 to Mubi Road on motorcycle
and boarded a bus to Yola.
Mbiya believes that some of the
soldiers are sympathetic to the
insurgents. He said:
“We cannot say they are
sympathisers but some of the
commanders have already sold out
the soldiers. That is what is
happening. So when they attack, the
commanders will not command the
troops to attack them. They just
keep withdrawing instead of
attacking.
But I think some of the soldiers are
members of Boko Haram; in fact,
many are sympathetic to the sect
because some of the soldiers don’t
shoot at the insurgents, they just
shoot into the air to exhaust their
bullets. Some have been known to
shoot at fellow soldiers instead of
the insurgents.”
Regina Bitrus:
“We were working on the farm on
the fateful day when around 3.00pm
I decided to go home. But when we
got to the stream, my son said he
wanted to bathe. I was carrying one
of the children on my back;
suddenly, a man came out of
nowhere, all covered up; only his
eyes were visible.
When I turned and saw him, I ran.
He caught me by the hand and we
began to struggle and I was able to
push him down. If not that I held
his hand, he would have slaughtered
me and my children.
I ran home and told my people that
I was leaving the village. They said
they were going to look for the man
but that I should leave everything to
God. I had four new wrappers worth
N8,000 which someone bought for
N1,000. I used the money to
transport myself and children to
Kamale to Sina-gali then to Mubi
and Yola.
Naomi Zira from Michika: The
insurgents met us at home. All our
neighbours had left town, including
my father and siblings.
My daughter saw one of them
coming from behind our house and
alerted me. But I couldn’t run. I
was pregnant. My daughter fled into
the bush and they entered and met
me. They asked what I was doing
and I said I could not run. They
asked if I had food and I said even if
I had nothing to eat, I would still
not run. They asked where my
husband was and I said they should
go in and search because my
husband had left three days earlier.
They said they would be back in the
evening to convert me to Islam and I
said I should convert to Islam at this
age? I said even if they decide to
kill me, I will not convert. They said
they will leave but if they came back
and still met me there, they would
slaughter me. As they drove off, I
took the bush path taken by my
daughter. I got to a rice farm and
met other members of my family
there. We spent two nights there. I
didn’t have money to travel, we were
helped by some people to get here.”
www.vanguardngr.com/2014/11/boko-haram-survivors-outwitted-insurgents-escape/

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