Chibok girls: We wrote to the state police but they did not answer us - Borno SSG

The Secretary to the Borno State Government, Ambassador Ahmed Jidda
was a guest on Channels TV Breakfast show, Sunrise Daily this morning
where he gave the state government's account on the missing Chibok
girls and why Borno government appeared handicapped in providing
security for the school girls on the night of the abduction.

During the interview, the SSG said the initial number of girls
abducted were 276 with 53 escaping and now remaining 223. He said with
the recent return of 4 more girls, the number of girls now with the
abductors is 219. He said the 77 girls shown in the recently released
video by Abubakar Shekau have been identified by their parents and
that the 57 girls that have so far returned are currently at the state
Governments house where they are being taken care of. Continue...

The SSG said the allegations that the abduction was stage managed by
the Governor to stop extension of emergency rule was totally false and
was discredited with the release of the video by Shekau taking
responsibility for the abduction of the girls and also stating his
conditions for the release of the girls. He said the military saying
they now know the location of the missing girls prove that the whole
abduction was never staged by the state government.

As regards the letter reportedly sent by the Minister of Education
warning that the Government Girls Secondary school was not safe to
write exams and the students be moved due to security reasons, the SSG
said indeed the state government received the letter but that the
letter sent by the Minister only requested for security details for
the Examination officials and not for the students. He aid the letter
asked that security be provided in exam venues which is in Maiduguri,
Biu, Chibok, Lassa and never asked for security for the students. He
said on receiving the letter, the state government wrote to the State
Police Commissioner requesting for security details for the WAEC
officials as stated in the letter but the police did not respond to
their request. He said the Minister's letter requested for security
only for the Unity schools which is owned by the Federal Government
and not for the Chibok Government schools as he never mentioned the
school in his letter. He maintained that the Minister never bothered
about the Chibok girls. He said the state Governor could not enforce
the Commissioner of Police to provide security for the students if
they did not want to do so because the Nigerian constitution did not
provide the Governor the power to interfere in the activities of the
Police which is to provide internal security in the state. He said
even though the Governor was called the Chief Security Officer of the
State, the constitution did not provide him any power to control the
police, army, or even the Nigerian Civil Defence Corp.

Asked why the Governor did not use from his security vault to provide
security for his people since the Commissioner of Police was allegedly
not being responsive, the SSG said

"Security vault has a wider implication. If you know what security
vault is, it has so many implications. Prayers for instance is a
security vault. We have never received any assistance from the Federal
Government in the area of security. The only time the FG supported
Borno state in the area of security was in 2009 when the insurgency
started. Till today, they released only N200m. This same FG released
3bn to security outfits. We have received only N200m, so this Governor
(Gov Kashim) is a Governor that has preoccupied himself with Funding
security matters. We have spent N10bn on security. We have provided
more than 400 vehicles to the security agencies. We pay for the
security official's logistics."Asked how much the security vault was,
he said

"Let me take you back to the Military. Security vault is a vault that
was unaccounted for but since the advent of democracy in 1999, it is
inscribed in the constitution that every Governor and even the
President should put it in the budget for consideration on the
approval of the National Assembly or State Assembly as the case may
be. In the case of borno, we had N4bn in 20011, N4bn in 2012 and N4bn
in 2013, for the 3years N12bn as proved in the budget as security
vault and is generally audited and gives a lead way to the Governor to
fund security requirement of the security agencies within Borno state.
Security operatives in Borno state would testify to tha fact, whether
on the part of the Commissioner of Police, or the Director of the SSS
or Customs, Police, Army they are all members of the security
councel.and when ever they raise issues on requirements, we never told
them to go to the FG or Min. of Defence. We always provided funding
for them" he said