Borno SEMA to offer scholarships to children of slain Civilian JTF

BY ABDULLAHI ISAH, MAIDUGURI

The Borno State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) is to sponsor the education of the children of the slain members of youth volunteers popularly known as Civilian JTF up to the tertiary level for paying the supreme price in defending their communities against Boko Haram insurgents in the state.

The Chairman of SEMA Engineer Ahmed Satomi, while addressing the162 widows of the slain members of CJTF, at the SEMA office Maiduguri Monday, said “I assure that SEMA will also pay scholarship to the children of the deceased Civilian JTF members to further their education up to tertiary level”.

Engineer Satomi also said that two bags of rice, sugar and beans, in addition to a set of wrapper were to be given to each household, as they lost their bread winners while defending their communities against Boko Haram insurgents.

He said “I want to sympathize with you as you lost your husbands in the cause of fighting insurgents. They have really paid a supreme price in defending our dear state and the North East in general. May their Souls Rest in Peace.

“We are donating these items to cushion your immediate hardship, and to boost the morale of those who are in the frontline fighting against remnants of Boko Haram terrorists. The gesture is going to be continuous and will be extended to local hunters and other vigilantes across the state,” Satomi added.

“These groups of people have sacrificed their lives to ensure peace in the state; they have been wonderful not only on the forefront in complementing effort of security agencies and the government, but also in assisting in taking care of over 1 million Internally Displaced Persons, IDPs, in our various camps across the state”.

One of the widows, Mrs. Halima Abba Mohammed in an interview said, she lost her husband in one of the Boko Haram attacks around Sambisa Forest when their operational vehicle stepped on planted landmines last year.

She however said since then, life has never been easy for her, but thanked SEMA and Borno State Government for giving her a sense of belonging by periodically donating relief items to carter for her family, and therefore urged wives of serving Civilian JTF members to always pray and support their husbands in the fight against insurgents.