Secret Report Links President of Chad and Sheriff To Boko Haram Sponsorship
Maiduguri, Damaturu, and Abuja
show dated communications
between field officers and the velvet
ranks of Nigeria's military
chronicling Mr. Sheriff's involvement
in promoting the growth of the
dreaded Boko Haram sect in Nigeria.
The communications painted a
picture of what appears to be a
powerful regional support involving
the Chadian president, Nigerian
officials and Niger Republic, and
spearheaded by Mr. Sheriff whom
the intelligence presents as a
powerful figure within this circle.
Strong evidence indicates that the
Nigerian government received
official actionable intelligence about
Mr. Sheriff's links to Boko Haram as
far back as 2011 but has, curiously,
ignored all warnings and nudges to
act to stop the Boko Haram…
According to the report by Premium
Times, Sheriff has long been
suspected of masterminding the
Boko Haram sect, but the
documents sighted by this
newspaper offers deeper
understanding into how Mr. Sheriff
allegedly finances the deadly sect
and his
probable motivations.
When Sheriff visits Abeche
Nourished by deep and impeccable
sources from members of the
Chadian Army, Nigerian intelligence
experts had arrived at fairly certain
conclusions that Mr. Sheriff was
actively involved in the recruitment,
training and deployment of Boko
Haram members.
"…members of Boko Haram sect are
sometimes kept in Abeche region in
Chad and trained before being
dispersed. This happens usually
when Mr. Sheriff visits Abeche," a
2011 memo from field officers in
N'djamena,the capital of Chad, read.
When Mr. Sheriff visits Abeche for
these activities, he lodges in Chadian
Presidential Guest House in Abeche,
and is provided security by the
Chadian government, the
intelligence communications claim.
Mr. Sheriff is a close friend of the
Chadian president, Idris Deby.
In 2011, during the Chadian
presidential elections, Mr. Sheriff
supported the Chadian president
with 35 vehicles, for security, and is
believed to have bankrolled Mr.
Deby's re-election.
Nigerian defence and intelligence
community members typically
describe Mr. Sheriff as a gun runner
in their many communications, and
they often speak in conviction that
his weapons find their way into
Nigeria through Niger Republic into
Yobe state. Yobe is Boko Haram's
stronghold and has suffered heavy
casualties in magnitudes
only second to Borno.
Money, Politics and Power
Back in August 2011, intelligence
officials were characterising Mr.
Sheriff's motivations for sponsoring
Boko Haram as similar to a certain
"3rd generation South South
governor," with the aim of covering
up financial irregularities he might
have committed as governor of
Borno state, as well as propagate a
stay-put in office
Strategy by suppressing the
opposition.
The officials suggest that Mr. Sheriff
did not create the sect but was
actively using the "monster" and
could be sponsoring the sect as a
way of protecting himself from the
sect members who were "calling for
his head" at the time.
"One way of reclaiming the lost
loyalty of the sect therefore, was
sponsorship of their cause,"
intelligence officials were telling
their principals.
New facts showing stronger links
between former governor of Borno
state, Ali Modu Sheriff, and the Boko
Haram sect has emerged, supporting
claims the ex-governor is a major
financier of the terrorist sect.
Mr. Sheriff was not reachable for his
comments. A former commissioner
under his administration as
governor of Borno state who also
speaks for him, Inuwa Bwala, told
PREMIUM TIMES Mr. Sheriff was
outside the country and could not
respond to enquiries.
Both the Nigerian defence
headquarters and the Nigerian
government also declined to
comment on this intelligence.
Phone calls were not answered, and
text messages were not replied to.
Chadian President Connection
An Australian negotiator, Stephen
Davis, recently named Mr. Sheriff,
alongside former Nigerian Army
Chief, Azubuike Ihejirika, as
sponsors of the Boko Haram sect,
quoting the sect's leadership.
Nigeria's defence intelligence was
silent on the role of Mr. Ihejirika in
promoting the deadly sect whose
bloody campaign have killed up to
5000 Nigerians and left many
homeless, broken and internally
displaced, but names the Chadian
president, Mr. Deby, as a new
dimension to the Boko Haram
sponsorship dynamics.
In 2011, a strong Boko Haram army
was also beneficial to the Chadian
president, as it provided a "ready
army and possible refuge" for a
president that was facing growing
distrust from his legitimate army,
Nigerian intelligence officials
claimed.
The Chadian government support for
the sect was made majorly through
his friendship with Mr. Sheriff and at
the expense of his country's
relationship with Nigeria, the report
said.
Transformed sect
Violence by the Boko Haram sect,
which had only religious interest in
the past, is traceable to the five days
of clashes in July 2009, between the
group and members of the security
forces in Borno, Yobe, Bauchi, and
Kano states that left more than 800
people dead, including at least 30
police officers.
The police summarily executed the
captured Boko Haram leader,
Mohammed Yusuf, along with
several dozen of his followers in
front of the police headquarters in
Maiduguri. Dozens of its members
were also arrested.
Boko Haram frequently said its
attacks on the government,
especially the police, are in revenge
for these killings and an attempt to
set free members incarcerated by
the police.
Recently, the ideology behind Boko
Haram attacks got more confusing
with increasing attacks on schools,
media houses and almost any soft
target with wide media reach. The
group has gotten bolder by the day
and has shown interest in capturing
and occupying cities it calls its
Caliphates.
The sect has overrun towns and
villages, including Mubi, Michika,
Bazza, Gulak, Gwoza, Bama,
Gamboru and Ngala in Adamawa and
Borno states. Ngala is the home
place Mr. Sheriff.
.
0 Comments: