Senator Ali Ndume, representing Borno South, warned that more than 400 people are being held by terrorists after recent attacks in the state. Speaking on Channels Television's Politics Today on Monday, he said the victims include women, children and the elderly and cited videos released by the militants as evidence.
Ndume described the community of Goshe as "completely devastated", noting that only a small mosque remains standing. Residents who fled to the Pulka IDP camp are living in harsh conditions and are pressing to return to their homes, even if only temporarily.
The influx of displaced persons has forced many to take shelter in a primary school in Pulka, displacing pupils and interrupting classes. Ndume highlighted that the 12‑kilometre road linking Pulka to Goshe is currently impassable, adding that repairing it would cut travel time to ten‑twenty minutes and aid both civilians and security forces.
He attributed the surge in attacks to insurgent retaliation after security forces killed several of their commanders, and criticised the inconsistent response following the declaration of a state of emergency. Ndume said soldiers lack adequate equipment, numbers and motivation, but believes the insurgency could be curtailed within six months if the government provides proper training, gear and incentives. He also called for a centralised "situation room" to enable real‑time coordination between federal and state authorities.
Ndume's assertion that the insurgency could be defeated in six months if political will materialises places the onus squarely on national leadership. The claim is bold, given the scale of the crisis he just described.
The senator's briefing reveals a cascade of failures: over 400 captives, a razed Goshe, an overwhelmed Pulka camp where children's schooling is disrupted, and a 12‑kilometre road that remains unusable. He links the renewed violence to retaliatory strikes after the military eliminated several insurgent commanders, while also pointing to erratic security operations after the state of emergency was announced.
For ordinary Borno residents, the immediate impact is stark. Displaced families are forced to live in makeshift shelters or a primary school, exposing children to interrupted education and families to inadequate protection. Their insistence on returning to Goshe, despite the ruins, underscores a desperation to escape the deteriorating conditions in Pulka.
Ndume's call for a "situation room" and better‑equipped troops mirrors a broader pattern of reactive, rather than proactive, security measures across Nigeria's troubled north‑east, suggesting that without systemic reforms, similar crises may continue to spread to other regions.
