Woman fleeing Boko Haram attack delivers baby in bush

 A pregnant woman fleeing from at­tacks by Boko Ha­ram at Kala-Balge community in Borno State has delivered a baby girl in the bush, a native of the area has disclosed.

According to Abba Ab­dulmuminu, in a press con­ference with journalists at the Correspondents Chapel in Bauchi, the woman was among thousands of natives of the local government area, who had fled the constant re­prisal attacks on the people of Kala-Balge by members of the deadly sect.

Last month, the people of Kala-Balge were celebrated for successfully defending  the communities from the attacks of the deadly Boko-Haram insurgents numbering over 300 who had attacked them. The Kala-Balge peo­ple overpowered the Boko Haram attackers, killing over 200 members of the in­surgents in the process and pushing them out of the area.

Angered by the bravery of the natives of Kala-Balge, the Boko Haram sect retali­ated in an expectedly brutal manner, killing hundreds of people and burning houses in villages and towns in the area .

Abdulmuminu told jour­nalists in Bauchi: “As a result of that attack, one month ago, the Boko-Haram members have regrouped and are kill­ing the people of Kala-Balge community. In fact, as I am talking to you now, almost all the people of Kala-Balge villages and towns have fled. Some of them are in the bor­der between Cameroon and Nigeria while some are in the bush.

“In fact, yesterday I was talking to my people and they told me a woman de­livered in the bush last night (June 3). There was no water, no shelter and no food be­cause it is a semi-desert area and there are no trees there. So the people there, even those in the borders are daily in the scorching sun.”

He regretted that the National Emergency Man­agement Agency (NEMA) director in Borno State was quoted as saying that ‘he needed people from Kala-Balge to come and convey relief materials to their peo­ple.’

“I have never seen where such a thing is done. If there are emergencies, NEMA is supposed to convey the materials for the people. So, how are you now asking the people of Kala-Balge to come and convey relief materials to their people. If NEMA has security chal­lenge, they should go to the government and tell them that this is our problem,” he said.

Abdulmuminu, who said he had not heard from his mother and many of his rela­tions, who fled since the sus­tained attacks on Kala-Balge, appealed to the Federal Gov­ernment to deploy troops and bring relief materials to the people.



Source: Sun

Publish Date: 

Thursday, 5 June 2014