GOVT PAYS N50M RANSOM FOR MONGUNO’S RELEASE
Kidnapped
elder statesman and former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Alhaji Shettima Ali
Monguno, has been released after the Borno State allegedly paid N50m ransom to
his kidnappers, suspected to be elements of the Boko Haram Islamic sect.
Monguno,
who was taken by gunmen last Friday after the Juma’at service at a mosque in
Mafoni ward of Maiduguri metropolis, a hotbed of Boko Haram activity, was
released in Kirenuwa, a village on the border with Chad Republic, in Marte
Local Government. Marte is about 145 kilometres from Maiduguri.
A
source said that Monguno, who arrived at his GRA compound in Maiduguri at 12
noon amidst tight security after spending four days in the kidnappers’ den,
looked traumatised, while sympathisers, especially women and relatives, shed
tears of joy on seeing him. When our correspondent visited the residence of the
elder statesman, Governor Kashim Shettima, friends, family members and well
wishers were seen in the compound.
However,
there were conflicting reports on the ransom paid by the state government.
While a source said that N20m was paid, another claimed that N50m was paid to
his abductors to secure his release.
Speaking
to newsmen shortly after his visit, Shettima, who declined comment on the
payment of ransom to the kidnappers by the state government, thanked God,
journalists and security agencies for their role in securing the release of the
elder statesman.
He
said: “I am overwhelmed by the release of our father, grandfather, Dr. Shettima
Ali Monguno, and he is in good health. The freedom was as a result of
persistent appeals to his captors by good spirited individuals, Borno people
and the state government.
“The
92-year-old educationist has spent all his life serving the country and
humanity, and he does not deserve inhuman treatment. “He has gone through thick
and thin during his stay in the hands of his abductors, but at last God has
answered our prayers as he has now regained his freedom.”
The
governor, however, appealed to members of the Boko Haram sect to lay down their
arms in the best interest of the people, stressing that no meaningful
development could be achieved without peace. Meanwhile, barely 24 hours after
gunmen suspected to be terrorists attacked a church and a market in Vinikland
on Yola-Mubi Road where three people were killed, Adamawa State Governor
Murtala Nyako and Shettima have resolved to fight terrorism and other criminal
activities in the two states.
Borno
shares three international borders with Niger, Cameroun and Chad Republics,
while Adamawa shares border with Cameroun, with both states regarded as hotbeds
of Boko Haram sect.
Nyako,
who paid a courtesy call on Shettima yesterday where he sympathised with the
people and government of Borno State over the recent Baga and Bama carnage,
donated N20m to the victims of the crisis. He said that Borno and Adamawa
states share the same culture and tradition, but the two states are experiencing
security challenges.
The
governor, however, noted that with the efforts being put in place by the
government, security agencies and prayers from spirited individuals, God will
surely restore peace not only in the North, but the country as a whole. Shettima
thanked Nyako for the visit and the donation, promising that the money would be
judiciously used.
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