Rampaging youths volunteer group, popularly called Civilian JTF, blocked the highway in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital on Saturday, stopping the convoy of the state Governor, Kashim Shettima.
The youths were protesting over the killing of one of their member by trigger happy policeman in front of the Borno Express Terminus, which is also adjacent to the headquarters of the State Security Services, SSS in Maiduguri.
The incident, which occurred shortly after the 2013 hajj inaugural flight was flagged off by Vice President, Mohammed Namadi Sambo, led the rampaging youths to also hack the police man to death.
Save for the intervention of the Borno State governor, who promised to pay ‘Diya’, of N3.5 million and also attend the burial of the youth volunteer on Sunday, the youths were not ready to shift their grounds.
Speaking with one of the youth volunteers, Mohammed Umar said, the civilian JTF members who arrested a Boko Haram member were controlling traffic flow along the Bullumkuttu highway when the police van came and was moving the opposite direction, which violated the traffic rules.
“He shot our boy. We want the people of Borno to know that the police are the Boko Haram, we do not want to work with them if we are to continue to help government in bringing back peace to the state.
“We sacrifice our lives for peace to reign in the state, we work better and understand ourselves with the military, but the police have always been the problem.”
Speaking to newsmen, the Borno State Governor Kashim Shettima faulted the police for the act, but pleaded with the civilian JTF to be calm as government would do everything possible to address the issue.
“I will personally attend the burial rites of the young man, and we are going to pay ‘diya’ to his family in accordance with islamic rites. We are also going to give his family members a house in the 1000 housing estate. It is indeed wrong and regretable especially at a time when we are looking for peace at all cost”, Governor Shettima said.
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