Why Maiduguri is vulnerable to Boko Haram attacks

Maiduguri, Borno State capital has remained vulnera­ble to Boko Haram bombers in recent times despite persistent military onslaught on the insurgents’ hideout and increasing collaboration by the state-backed Civilian JTF.
Within a week, no fewer than 42 people have been killed in six bomb blasts in the capital while about 65 people have been injured. In the densely populated Dala, Ajilari and Sajeri wards, located outskirts of the city centre, multiple explosions

killed at least seven people last Tues­day while the northeast office of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) confirmed that a total of 37 dead bodies were evacu­ated from the scenes of Thursday and Friday bomb attacks at Molai, a suburb of Maiduguri.
Similar bomb attacks were carried out by four suicide bombers on mosques, houses and crowded areas in Ajilari, three weeks ago, leading to the death of 54 people, according to the police.
Sunday Sun observed that Boko Haram bombers often looked out for soft targets, penetrating through the city outskirts. A security source said the insurgents capitalized on the vulnerability of the communities at the city outskirts to perpetrate the bombing acts. “As it is now, it is difficult for Boko Haram to carry out effective attack on the city or nearby as they were doing before because the military has decapitated them. Unfortunately, some of these communities at the outskirts are easily accessed by the Boko Haram bombers because of their proximity to the insurgents’ former strong­hold,” the source, a senior security personnel told Sunday Sun.
Giving more insight into the perspective, the source said Boko Haram used to operate freely along Damboa road, southwest of Maidu­guri but the increasing military offensive reduced its terror activities as it now sends bombers through the area to penetrate communities bordering the area.
“You will notice that most of the recent bomb attacks occurred in the evening time when it is dark. Intelligence has shown that most of the suicide bombers often stroll from the nearby bushes into the commu­nities and detonated IED,” a military officer also said, blaming residents for security lapses. “We have been telling people to take security mat­ters seriously but everybody appears to believe only the security agencies should handle security matters,” the officer said.
Sunday Sun gathered that most of the bombers disguised as either strangers looking for a loved one or pretending to be looking for consumables to buy. “In some cas­es, they just walk into a mosque and detonate their IEDs,” says Abdullahi Ali, a Maiduguri resident, urging people to be security con­scious. He said the refusal of many residents to act when they see strange face(s) in their community was responsible for the vulnerabil­ity of their area to Boko Haram attacks.
He gave the example of a suspected Boko Haram suspect who was arrested at Umarari Baya Waya village behind Molai General Hospital where bomb explosion killed seven people in a mosque on Friday morning. “It was the alertness of the people, especially the youth vigilante that helped in apprehending the suspect,” he added.
Some youth vigilante members had suspect­ed a young lanky man on bicycle from a dis­tance at Umarari village. Bukar Mohammed, a member of Civilian JTF said the manner at which the young man rode into the area generated suspicion as they (vigilante) later pursued him into the bush. “He fled when he realized we were trailing him. He later abandoned his bicycle and hid under bags of guinea corn but was apprehended later,” Bukar explained. The suspect later confessed to be a Boko Haram on surveillances.
Acting Director, Army Public Relations, Nigerian Army, Colonel Sani Kukasheka said the insurgents have been decapitated and as such, resort to attacking soft targets with Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs). He advised residents to be more vigilant so as not to allow Boko Haram perpetuate its terror acts.