One Minute in Chibok with Romeon Okwo

                                                        One Minute in Chibok
                                 
                                                           By Romeon Okwo

Today is the seventh day of the seven month in 2019,the time was exactly 1500.GMT,almost four hour journey from my take-off point Biu via Gombi to Hong and Askira Uba .

The trip was a real exposing one as I feed  my eyes on the beautiful landscape nature had bestrode these people of the Northeast.from Hauwel in Borno state to the mountainous rocks in Gombi and the wonderful rocky valley of Hong and Uba in Adamawa state,these local government areas  are sight to behold.

I was in solitude mood,as our car climbed up and rolled down the plateau,just wishing,one of the community should have being my village.I wish Nigeria is a liberal state where citizens could migrate and claim any part of the country as his or her country home. I'm In love with Hong,the surrounding was naturally beautiful,the rocks were arranged in rolls of fence around the town,the community sit right inside the valley with tall Imitating coconut trees,a palm specie,I m yet to find it real name,the town is like a movies site,I'never knew,the northeastern part side of the state has a place so amazing beautiful like that, especially for people like me  that is inclined with nature.
although the weather from Gombi is heigh but as  you approached Hong,the heat is absorbed by the Rockies mountains.

We  stop at Uba to refilled our vehicle ,Uba town is a thirty five minute drive from Mubi town,the place that house the Adamwa state University and a famous border town with Nigeria and Cameroon,Uba also happen to be among the few local Government areas in the country that uses a single road lane to demarcate its boundary between Borno and Adamawa state.

As we head to Asikra Uba the Headquarters of  Uba local government being the last major town before Chibok ,the signs and damages that the Insurgencies had caused start manifesting in our front.
Every ten kilometer drive was a check point,it is not just mount by the soldiers alone ,they is some sort of gate and a terrible barrier within the checkpoint that you dare not attempt to break,all passengers must jump down at these checkpoint and trek about five hundred meters to catch up with their drivers.

Indeed,Asira Uba was real hit by the insurgency,as we passed,I saw many buildings that were raked down,so many,even with the Calmness provided by the Army, you can not take away the skeletal damages the Boko Haram boys left behind.you see Solider's among the civilian as if they were in barrack.As we proceed my co traveller who was familiar wth the terrain finally decided to open up conservation with me after observing my frantic note taking in the past hours,he has being avoiding my conservation so far as I tried several times to bring up one but when he discovered my Hausa lingua was poor,he has create a silence by refusing to even complain of our driver attitude of pick and drop when we are actually covering poor distance to past Chibok gate which it said to close by 6.00pm,gradually the driver match pedal and our vehicle pick up the speed again as we race our last lap from Asikira Uba, getting toward the last meter in the town,my journey friend now pointed to the old local government headquarter which the insurgents were using as their amour brigade station.he told me the building was brought down with bomb as Nigeria army were regaining control of the town,so the boys decide to rumble it down that being our rare moment again.

I cannot said in confident that,normalcy had return to these places the way things look,as anytime Soldiers dare to leave  the communities,possibly the boys will be back,as the whole situation still look scary,houses occupied by returnees are only by the road side,when I strech my look beyond the cluster houses by the  roadside,I saw a lot of empty houses which probable tell,the people are yet to return back to their homes,I have a feelings,many may not be willing to come back to this homes again.

Gradually we head toward Chibok town,at first I was amazed with the flat table landscape ,I think the town is all flat without rocks but as we approach it first checkpoint,I saw a mighty rock which probably should had being the rock,the mythical  Chibok King that refused to surrender to the Kanuri conquest disappear into,some Chibok historians believed the king disappeared into  the Rocky Mountains to avoid being capture by the legendary Kanuri jihadist after the Kings charms could not sustain him anymore against the magical power  of the Kanuri,the king flies onto the Rock and was never seen again till date
Chibok is not as huge and devesating as international and the local media had painted. Perharp,the adoption of the Chibok school
girls has given it the fame,but they were pocket of burn-down houses,as we enter the main town,we were first met by the 128 Army Battalion Briadges,a temporary barrack that was built as results of the insurgencies strikes. I was told by my co traveller,no call was allowed in this areas as the place still wear the faces of war.you saw army soldiers in their numbers up and down the streets.

Chibok is a small town very small indeed as we took just few minutes to cross it main town.By my standards,if it were to be in South South or Southeast,they is no way it should have been a local government headquarter as they are very few modern structures that should housed a local government headquarter,I recalled well,they are several communities well developed and better structured that weren't made local government areas in South South but I was not too surprised as I knew how the local government areas were established those days.
As we proceed within the town,many things come to bear,a lot of houses were real pull down,no major presence of any State or Federal government establishment,all I saw was just individuals building which are the locals inhabitants,I would even being bold to say,"Chibok was real neglected by the Borno state government,they was not single tarred road within the town or out of the town not even one.

We move toward the famous government Girls Secondary School Chibok where the girls were adopted,the school was situated about ten minute drive away from the main town,from the look of things,the school had undergone some renovation but it seem the pupils were not real in secession as the whole area were occupied by security men.they was huge barricade to the school gate,about three or two blockade mount by troop of the Nigeria army.I tried to take a photo and I was asked by one of the officer not to dare.I tactically urged the driver to delay the motor after the checkpoint so I can  do my mental recording  as taking note will be sending a wrong signals to the soliders.

G.G.S.S Chibok must had being like many others secondary schools left by government without any form of  social or security infrastructures due to negligence,as I observed ,road to the school was eroded,I was even informed by my co traveler that "the school was not fence at the time the boys came and the fence I see now was built after the invasion" my co traveler seem to be indigene as he eventually knew so much,he also told me that,at the time,the boys came to the school,at about two pm,with two full load of Lorries, Chibok as whole then do not have police station with full operational men that can even secured the town not to talk more of combating arms full Boko  fighters,the army check point was mount with few officers, so the boys were able to have their way smoothly,he showed me the way the boys followed as he tried to paint the way one can get to Sambisa forest from Chibok

However Chibok is peaceful now, I was able to walk some distance down the new school the girls were transfer to and on my way back,I chart with some of the residents and even with some of the students on their way back to school.they were scare of me at first but later some were able to talk with me.
Most of them said "they will not go back to the school even if the government build solider barrack around the school.I tried to known if the abducted one released has being seen at home,and I was informed of Many the girls that refused to stayed at the school provide by the government are in Chibok but some of the that girls refusing going back to school for a reason I was not told are in town with parents.
I was afraid to used my Camara as Solider's and secret service men I sighted near the new school scared me off.

Chibok  people are hospitable as the Mama-put I ate at her place seem so caring,she insist to give me one free Ogbomo when I ask for extract and provide me a free pure water.one thing I will not forget is the negligence of Chibok town by the Borno state government. Chibok is the lest developed local among the many local government areas I m touring in the state in this my personal sojourn of community journalism.