A report released by the BBC has claimed that the Federal Government
paid the sum of two million euros to Boko Haram to secure the release of
the 82 school girls abducted by the Islamic terrorist group in 2014 in
Chibok, Borno State.
The report also disclosed that the five Boko Haram Commanders who
were swapped for the girls alongside the alleged sum were specialist in
bomb making.
The Federal government has, however, not denied claims that there was
negotiation with the sect members for the release of the girls.
The report reads in part, “The release of the 82 girls came with a
price. Five senior Boko Haram militants were moved from a high security
unit to be driven to freedom. The details of the deal are sketchy.
“Our sources don’t want to be named and their version of events is
hard to confirm, but they say the men were high-level Boko Haram
bomb-makers, and that they were accompanied by two million euros in
cash.”
Quoting one of its sources, the report said, “Paying a ransom as well
as swapping prisoners was a sticking point that almost unravelled the
whole deal, one source tells us. It should have happened sooner, but the
president was hesitating about freeing the five – and especially about
the money.”
The report further quoted the source as saying Persuading the
President was “very, very difficult. It was the most difficult part of
the whole negotiation. He didn’t want to pay any money. “The ransom was
two million euros. Boko Haram asked for euros. They chose the suspects
and they gave us the list of girls who would be freed.”
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