Borno State Governor, Babagana Umara Zulum, has called for the urgent deployment of newly trained Forest Guards to support the military after 63 people, including 58 residents and five soldiers, were killed in a Boko Haram attack on Darajamal community, Bama Local Government Area.
Zulum who visited the community on Saturday, described the killings as very sad and commiserated with the victims’ families.
“We are here to commiserate with the people of Darajamal over what happened last night that has claimed the lives of many people. It is very sad,” the governor revealed while speaking to journalists.
According to him, the community had only been resettled a few months ago and residents had returned to normal activities before the tragedy struck.
The governor confirmed that 63 people were killed in the attack, including nearly 60 civilians and five soldiers, noting that the civilian deaths were higher.
The governor noted that the military alone cannot cover all vulnerable areas in the state and emphasized the need to deploy Forest Guards to strengthen security in rural communities.
“We must understand that the number of military personnel is not sufficient to provide security in all areas. So far so good, two sets of Forest Guards have been trained; therefore, one of the solutions that we need to implement immediately is to deploy the trained Forest Guards to most of the locations that are vulnerable. They will protect the forest and communities,” Zulum said.
