Three of the 334 boys abducted by Boko Haram operatives have contradicted the federal government’s claim that no money was paid to secure the release of the Government Science Secondary School, Kankara students, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal.
Armed men stormed Government Science Secondary School, Kankara, in Katsina State on Friday, December 11, an hour before midnight shooting into the air. Security operatives were unsuccessful in their attempt to repel the gunmen who eventually led 334 schoolboys into captivity.
The Wall Street Journal, a US-based publication, on Wednesday, reported that three of the released boys disclosed that ransom was paid to their abductors, but there was no exact figure mentioned.
This contradicts the federal government’s position that the boys were released without rasom payment.
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The publication quoted someone familiar with the negotiation between the federal government and the abductors as stating that a sizable sum had been paid for the boys’ freedom.
The 334 boys were released after six days in life-threatening condition to the federal government. The senior special assistant to the president on media and publicity, Garba Shehu stated that repentant terrorists made the safe return of the boys possible.
The Governor of Zamfara State gave credit to Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) and repentant bandits for the release of the abducted boys.
One of the boys was forced to eat uncooked potatoes and Kalgo leaves as food, according to The WSJ report.
“They threatened to release only 30 of us when the N30 million initial ransom was paid,” the report quoted 16-year-old Yinusa Idris to have said.
“They even took 30 of us away on motorcycles ready to release.”
According to the account of a 17-year-old boy, named Imran Yakubu who was among the boys kidnapped, the abductors said the ransom demanded for each of the boys was one million naira per student, failure to meet their demands would result in death or recruitment into the group.
Narrating the ordeal, WSJ wrote: “There were more than 100 armed men in the school courtyard. They were shining bright flashlights and streaming into the pastel-coloured buildings”.
“The gunmen, some on foot, others on motorcycles, ordered the boys to walk in a long column, hitting anyone who walked too slowly with a whip or rifle butt.
“At one point, when the guards were looking at the sky, two students close to the back of the convoy tried to slip away. The hostages were all told to halt so they could watch their classmates being punished.
“The older one’s hands were tied to a tree and he was beaten. Water was poured on his body in the early morning so that he could feel the freezing cold.”
While narrating the role of the military in the rescue operation, the defence ministry said the troops closed in on the abductors from four different fronts.
