My Boko Haram experience
Barely two weeks after my wedding, I had one of the tragic experiences of life. The Boko Haram insurgency had just started in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital. On a certain fateful day, about 5pm, I had just returned home from the office after a hectic day. Few minutes after my return, I was cracking jokes with my elder brother’s children and my wife when we began to hear some deafening noise, accompanied by sporadic gunshots. The dreadful Boko Haram sect had engaged Nigerian soldiers in a fierce battle behind my house. The exchange of gunfire lasted for almost an hour.
As soon as the gun duel started, I, my wife and the two kids lay on the floor, highly terrified and confused. We only managed to stand up and walk around the house when the sounds of gunshots stopped. We heaved sighs of relief and thanked the almighty God for saving our lives.
But trouble had not ended. A couple of hours after that ugly incident, precisely 6am the following day, heavy and random knocks on our gate woke me and my wife. “Who could that be?” I asked no one in particular as fear gripped me again. My mouth was filled with prayers as I walked towards the gate. “Who is there?” I shouted. But the answer I got was another heavy bang on the gate. When I eventually opened the gate, I was confronted by fierce-looking, angry and violent soldiers. Before I could ask the purpose of their visit, the men in uniform were already in my house, almost at the parlour. They did not ask for permission. But I insisted that they had no right to badge into my house, pointing out that I had a family and needed protection. I insisted on my right As soon as the gun duel started, I, my wife and the two kids lay on the floor, highly terrified and confused. We only managed to stand up and walk around the house when the sounds of gunshots stopped. We heaved sighs of relief and thanked the almighty God for saving our lives to privacy.
“I will shoot you and say you are a Boko Haram terrorist and nothing will happen,” one of them threatened. My wife advised that I should not interfere in their job, so I listened to her and let them do whatever they wanted. They ransacked the entire house. After the search, one of them said to me, “You are lucky.” When they left, peace of mind returned to the house.
We managed to complete our rent for that year and vacated the house as the area was filled with Boko Haram insurgents. We had to run for our dear lives.
No sooner did we start a new life in our newly rented apartment at Fori Close than another trouble started. At the wee hours of Friday, March 14, 2014, I overheard some strange voices indistinctly discussing. They discussed in Kanuri language. Since I could not understand the language, I called my wife, who, though not a Kanuri, understands and speaks the language perfectly. After listening to them, she explained that though they discussed in hush tones, she could deduce that something was wrong. As soon as we stepped out of the room there was a bomb blast. The insurgents had attacked Giwa Barracks, which was few miles away from our new house. This attack was worse than the first. My wife got missing Jolted by the loud explosion, my wife, who was five-month pregnant with our first child, jumped over a tall fence of about 6ft high. Till date, none of us can explain how it happened. We still remember what happened that day with incredulity.
Before I could take my car key, the men were already approaching my house. I left the car at the gate and ran for my life. I and my wife ran at different directions to no specific destination. Along the way I fell into a river where I met a man who was completely naked. Perhaps he was in a restroom when the blast occurred and he ran out. I had two pairs of trousers, so I gave one to him. I could not understand how I wore two pairs of trousers.
A day had gone by and I didn’t see my wife, neither did I know her whereabouts. It was the following day that she called me on phone saying, “Thank God you are alive.” It was a big relief, but we continued to live in constant fear. No one knew what might happen the next minute.
When we returned few days later, the insurgents had set our house ablaze and nothing was salvaged. However, my car was spared though its rear glass was I left the car at the gate and ran for my life. I and my wife ran at different directions to no specific destination. Along the way I fell into a river where I met a man who was completely naked. Perhaps he was in a restroom when the blast occurred and he ran out. I had two pairs of trousers, so I gave one to him. I could not understand how I wore two pairs of trousers broken. It was a devastating and traumatic experience.
I was later transferred from Maiduguri to Kano. Life was restored and peace existed once more. Indeed, it was a very tragic experience. May God forgive the departed souls and may generations to come not experience such disaster ever again.