A Cry for Truth: Borno Elders Confront Federal Denial Over Security Realities

………….Truth Under Fire: Elders Warn Against Ignoring Borno’s Reality

By Admin
10th April 2025

In a nation still gripped by the ripples of insurgency, where the dust of violence barely settles before it is stirred again, the voice of the Borno Elders Forum (BEF) has rung out—not in defiance, but in despair, disappointment, and an urgent call for truth.

In a powerfully worded statement released to kanempress.org by the Forum’s Spokesman and Secretary Dr Bulama Mali Gubio, mni. The BEF expressed deep concern and heartbreak over what it describes as a “reckless rebuttal” by Nigeria’s Honourable Minister of Information regarding the deteriorating security situation in Borno State. The elders, custodians of tradition and survivors of decades of upheaval, were neither confrontational nor political. They were pained.

“For too long, we have endured in silence. But silence must never be mistaken for consent,” the Forum stated through its Secretary and Spokesman, Dr. Bulama Mali Gubio. “We must give a caution to critical state actors not to rub our long-pussing wounds with salt.”

The roots of this clash trace back to a recent public denial by the Minister of Information, who countered official assessments from the Borno State Government and its Security Council. These assessments, grounded in hard realities and firsthand experiences, outlined ongoing threats, insecurity, and the psychological toll exacted on the people of Borno by the unrelenting insurgency.

The Forum’s response? Deep disappointment, and a demand—not for confrontation, but for acknowledgment.

The Weight of Wounds

The BEF represents more than a council of elders; it embodies generations of lived experience. These are leaders who have watched their communities be ravaged, who have buried loved ones, who have picked up the pieces of shattered towns and tried to stitch hope into the seams of survival.

“Our Governor, our traditional fathers, our state security operatives and our highly traumatised people have endured unimaginable trauma,” the statement read. “We are therefore distressed to hear that a Minister of the Federal Republic had thrown caution to the wind.”

In their words is not only grief but a fierce defense of their governor, Professor Babagana Umara Zulum—a leader widely respected across Nigeria for his courage, compassion, and clarity in navigating one of the country’s most difficult governorships.

An Appeal for Decency, Not Politics

Importantly, the BEF’s message is neither partisan nor accusatory. Instead, it seeks empathy, respect, and alignment between those who govern from Abuja and those who govern in the line of fire.

“We in Borno hold the Federal Government under the current leadership in the highest esteem,” the elders emphasized. “We are always in absolute support of the government and would expect a reciprocal gesture.”

The call is clear: If we are to heal, the truth must be acknowledged—not denied.

The Toll of Denial

Denial, in this context, is more than a political misstep. It risks alienating communities already balancing on the edge of despair. It risks rewriting the lived realities of thousands who continue to hope that someone, somewhere, understands their pain.

“Borno is traumatised,” the elders plead. “Our people are struggling hard to be supportive and resilient. Please do not aggravate our woes,” Gubio, mni, Said.

In the face of federal denial, the Forum is calling not just for a retraction, but for something more profound: dignity, unity, and truth. “The whole nation should know that what our Governor and our State Security Council said is the absolute position of things in the state.”

The Path Forward

With the nation watching, the BEF’s message reverberates beyond Borno. It is a mirror held to a country at crossroads, a stark reminder that national healing begins with honest dialogue and mutual respect.

“We are therefore calling on the Federal Government—all arms—to work towards rescuing Borno, and indeed the whole nation, from this indignified state of affairs.”

Dr. Bulama Mali Gubio, mini, a statesman of calm gravitas, closed the message not with blame, but with a hopeful challenge: for Nigeria to listen, respond, and act—not in denial, but in solidarity.

Because truth, no matter how painful, is always the first step toward peace.

DR. BULAMA MALI GUBIO,mni
SECRETARY/SPOKESMAN, BEF.