How Boko Haram smuggles weapons into Nigeria – Ex-N/Delta militants

WARRI—EX-MILITANTS in the Niger-Delta, under the auspices of the defunct Niger Delta Liberation Force, NDLF, said they have uncovered a secret conduit through which the militant Islamic sect, Boko Haram, allegedly transports weapons/ammunition into the country.

Spokesperson of the group, ‘Captain’ Mark Anthony, told Vanguard in an exclusive interview, yesterday, in Warri, Delta State, that a top government official (names withheld) was using his influence to circumvent the laws of Nigeria Customs to allow entry through the nation’s border to illegal arms dealers who supply military hardware to members of the sect.

President Goodluck Jonathan, speaking at a church service held at the National Christian Centre to mark the 2012 Armed Forces Remembrance Day, early this year, had said that members of the Islamic sect had infiltrated the three arms of government at the federal level.

He confessed that combating Boko Haram was complicated as members of the Boko Haram sect were in the armed forces, the executive, legislature and judiciary.

The NDLF spokesperson told Vanguard that the top official, evidently among the key financiers of Boko Haram, “is single-handedly sponsoring the current anti-Jonathan debates in the National Assembly to destabilise President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration.”

The former agitators called on President Jonathan to dismiss the official and order his arrest by security agencies and prosecution for offences against the state.

He said: “We, therefore, call for the immediate sack, arrest, investigation and prosecution of the shadowy Boko Haram senior officer and financier in government to serve as a deterrent to others.”

Asked if the group had alerted any of the nation’s security agencies on its findings, he said: “This is our own method of alerting the security agencies so that they will swing into action.

“We are willing to uncover more dirty deals of the financier to assist investigators whenever the time comes to nail him of his sins against the Nigerian state, without fear or favour.”

Pointing out that the northern group had purportedly concluded plans to foment more troubles in the country, Anthony said: “We, Niger Delta ex-agitators, therefore, cannot fold our arms and allow these shady characters and anti-Jonathan northern elements to continue to destroy his administration, while at the same time enjoying patronage at top positions in the government.”