WOMEN and young females are signing up to join youth vigilante groups known as the civilian Joint Task Force (JTF) across Maiduguri as the hunt for Boko Haram members intensifies across the metropolis.



Being on the run and forced to operate covertly, Boko Haram has resorted to using women to plant bombs and its members are also disguising as females. To combat this, the civilian JTF is now recruiting women who can stop and search suspicious characters in hijabs or purdahs to see if they are concealing weapons.



According to reports from Maiduguri, yesterday, girls and women, aged between 15 and 30 were seen in the city carrying swords, daggers, knives and sticks. They stop and search vehicles and pedestrians together with their male counterparts and take it upon themselves to frisk female suspects.



Whenever a vehicle is stopped, the women volunteers check their womenfolk while men check men and when the vehicle is certified the driver is allowed to go. Both private and commercial vehicles are not spared in the operation as the checkpoints mounted by the youths far outnumber that of the security operatives.



One of the volunteers named Halima, who is 17, said: "We joined the civilian JTF in order to be searching females. A woman can search any other woman anywhere and nobody can raise eyebrows.”



She added that she was not afraid at all and had participated in raiding some houses in the Kumshe ward of Maiduguri where Boko Haram gun men were suspected to be hiding. “Securing Maiduguri is now a collective responsibility, irrespective of age, gender or status, as the safer the town, the better for all of us,” Halima added.



Another volunteer, Saratu, said she suspended working as a sales girl in order to take part in the routine patrol being undertaken by civilians. Hawkers of weapons such as swords, bows and arrows and knives are now enjoying brisk business in Maiduguri as a result of the high patronage by the civilian JTF.



Before the emergence of the youth groups, it was not possible to see anyone selling daggers in the open but now, the industry is enjoying a boom. One of the hawkers said his sales had risen by over 80% in recent weeks, adding: “The price of a sword has also gone up from N250 to N350 or more.”



Meanwhile, Barrister Usman Sani, a Maiduguri legal practitioner said there was the need to control the proliferation of such weapons in the hands of the youths. “If the authorities do not take the right measures now, we would find ourselves confronted with another serious dilemma in the nearest future,” he added.



JTF spokesman Lt Col Sagir Musa echoed his thoughts. He called on parents to also assist the authorities in regulating the activities of the youth vigilante groups.

www.nigerianwatch.com/news/2008-maiduguri-women-and-young-ladies-sign-up-to-act-as-anti-boko-haram-vigilantes#

Why arm civilians? Hmmmm this doesn't look good.

Wow very interesting, you u pple are just waking up?
Ppl allow themselfs 2 b hit b4 taking actions, in other word medisin after death,
never d less R. I. P to ur love ones that u ppl lost when u wea ignorant;(

May God help us.

Hmmm... God help Nigeria
From the beginning it was not so....
4th to. Comment sha...I will get there one day

the picture attached to the post is not from nigeria

Good news!

I like this. Mek d foolish boko women come hide bomb for pant and bra again mek we see. If they like,let them allow pubic hairs to grow like bush on their toto, female civilian JTF would help them to prune the hairs. They can as well open and plant the bomb inside,female civilian JTF would also open the Toto and fish the bombs out after which the Toto would be left ajar forever so that virgin hunters would bleep boreholes in heaven

I'm reserving this space for future comments...This not the time to comment.












I will return after 6 months

This is good fight against the bokos, kudos to civilian jtf

It tink the arm circulation should be controlled, hope they wont turn against themselves lata

Its a welcome development. GEJ is working

Blimey!I hav a funi feeling abt dis ish.d whole north shld b wiped off d surface of dis earth make person fit drink water drop cup.*wondering wat peter griffin wud do if he was our president*

rip boko are ram

Taiwo20: Hmmm... God help Nigeria
From the beginning it was not so....
4th to. Comment sha...I will get there one day

Where exactly will you get to, Top of the page, or Borno? Just curious.

Kudos to the brave women.

That's good because security is collective duty of every one, with the boldness of the ladies in searching for the insurgents, may Allah be with them and give them victory.

i can perceive danger. I think these political demagogues are systematical arming
even the youth ahead of 2015.

Front page again kwa. I have a feeling that things are beggining to get better for me following my constant appearance in FP. Ok back to the topic, hope these women would make something positive in this their tactics

“Securing Maiduguri is now a collective responsibility, irrespective of age, gender or status, as the safer the town, the better for all of us,”. I love this comment from Halima. Good luck to you all.

Wat a man can do, a woman can do berra ...... Let der b war, war ......

Ah! Now I believe Boka Haram is in trouble. We all know what happens when women get involved in things they do not want. Lol. The war just began.

I was banned for 2months by Mr Seun Osewa for standing for and by the truth. Seun am waiting for apology letter from you and mod Ikenna. At topic, these girls are fiighters. Respect to them

Good for dem

This boko haram making headlines in different ways. I heard they just killed students in their hostels, may d blood of those kids speak against any supporter and member of boko haram.
AMEN

What man can do, women can do better ... abi ....

That picture doesn't look Nigerian...

looks like malians

I salute these girls for their bravery. Can my people ever exhibit such bravery? Well, maybe when it gets to that stage, they will be forced to do same. Good work, you're doing us proud.

illitrate: i can perceive danger. I think these political demagogues are systematical arming
even the youth ahead of 2015.

you just read my mind.
but wait o.how come u can read when ur handle says you're illiterate?

Muslims (one is Halima and the other Saratu and much more) fighting BH, nobody would talk about that now! Bunch of jealous HYPOCRITE.

Ifetex: Wow very interesting, you u pple are just waking up?
Ppl allow themselfs 2 b hit b4 taking actions, in other word medisin after death,
never d less R. I. P to ur love ones that u ppl lost when u wea ignorant;(

So lame a response!