Damaturu, the capital of Yobe State, North-eastern Nigeria, has been struggling to stand in the face of violence in Maiduguri due to activities of Boko Haram and military reprisals.
In the last few days, increased bombing of places of worship, drinking joints and public places by Boko Haram in Maiduguri has necessitated government’s resort to stringent security measures such as the ban on motorbikes which has left thousands of commercial motorcyclists jobless.
In view of this, most commercial motorcyclists formally operating within Maiduguri metropolis have now relocated to Damaturu, a development which some residents of the city described as a serious security threat.
A young businessman at Damaturu Phone Village, Mallam Lawan Lawan who spoke to AriNews in local parlance expressed fear at the manner in which the “achaba” (motorbike) riders are trooping into the town unchecked.
In the meantime, the sudden closure of the University of Maiduguri and most other schools as a result of continued deterioration of security situation in Maiduguri have caused panic, leading to mass exodus of people from the troubled town.
To crown it up, government has redeployed youth corps members to other states.
Most residents of Maiduguri have also fled for fear of possible attacks from Boko Haram and military reprisals.
Some elders and Lawmakers from the crisis-torn Maiduguri have accused the Joint Task Force (JTF) of aggravating the security situation in the state for indulging in indiscriminate killings of civilians and called for their immediate removal.
In addition, Amnesty International, a reputable organisation championing the crusade for respect of human rights has added its voice to the condemnation of the killings of civilians by the JTF.
Meanwhile, Yobe State has been struggling to meet the challenges of containing the large influx of people into Damaturu.
As the nearest state capital to Borno State and owing to the fact that it is peaceful, Damaturu has been the major destination of most people displaced by the crisis in Maiduguri.
In order to ensure that small arms and light weapons are not smuggled into the small peaceful town, an anti-Boko Haram check point has been mounted at the entrance to Damaturu where people are thoroughly screened.
Being a small town, Damaturu faces challenges of accommodating large number of people trooping into it, how to fend for them and prevent possible threat to its peaceful existence.
When AriNews sought the opinion of an Agro-allied businessman at Abacha ward in Damaturu, Bilar Lukar, on the current situation in the place in the face of the recent challenges, he said “no problem, Damaturu I is fine.”
It could be recalled that the ex-leader of the Boko Haram, Mohammed Yusuf who was summarily executed by some men of the Nigerian Police was an indigene of Yobe State.
Most of the initial attacks of the Islamic sect on the Police were carried out in Yobe State, but since 2009 when the sect formally declared war on government, the state has remained outside the sect’s targets of attacks.
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