Boko Haram: Families Still Waiting for Loved Ones

By Halima Yusuf…

Three months after Boko Haram insurgents attacked Chibok and abducted several residents, survivors taking refuge at the Dalori Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) Camp on the outskirts of Maiduguri say they are still waiting and hoping for news of those taken.

The attack on May 3 left at least 25 people dead and six others missing, including Albert Eyimofe Esiri, Dauda Saleh, Isa Yakubu, and three teenage girls aged 12, 14, and 16. None have been found.

At the Dalori camp, where many survivors have been living since the incident, life has settled into a routine of waiting. Days are marked by food distributions, prayer sessions, and visits from aid workers.

Mrs. Esimajemite Mabiabiaku Esiri, wife of one of the abducted men, still holds on to the hope that her husband, Albert, is alive.

When this reporter visited the camp this week, Mrs. Esiri was sitting in the shade of her tent, sewing a torn school uniform for her six-year-old daughter. Her voice was steady, but her eyes were tired.

“It has been three months now,” she said quietly. “Sometimes I dream that he is
calling my name. I wake up and realize he is not here. But my heart tells me he is
alive.”

Her daughter, who has begun attending makeshift classes in the camp, still asks about her father every morning.

“She keeps saying, ‘Mummy, when is Daddy coming back?’” Mrs. Esiri added. “I tell her soon, even when I don’t know.”

Dalori Camp, already overcrowded before the Chibok arrivals, now holds more than 2,000 displaced persons from across Borno and Adamawa states. Many of them fled similar attacks over the years.

Aid agencies continue to provide food, medicine, and basic supplies, but resources are stretched thin. Long queues form each morning at the boreholes, and the ration cards issued by camp authorities are closely guarded by families.

“We are coping, but the needs are greater than the help,” said Umar Ali, a volunteer with the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA). “Many people here have been displaced more than once.”

Children attend classes under makeshift shelters run by UNICEF-supported teachers. Most have no shoes or books. Yet, according to camp officials, attendance remains high.

Counselors say the greatest challenge is psychological. Many of the women still suffer nightmares about the attack.

“The memories don’t go away easily,” said Grace Yakubu, a trauma support worker.

“We talk to them every day. Some have lost everything — husbands, homes, and children.”

For Mrs. Esiri, sleep remains difficult. She said she often lies awake listening for motorcycles, haunted by the sound that began the night of the attack.

“I keep praying,” she said. “If I lose hope, I will lose myself.”

Authorities Promise Continued Search
Security officials say efforts are ongoing to trace the abductees. A senior military officer in Maiduguri said that surveillance operations are continuing in the Sambisa Forest area.

“We are not giving up,” he said.

“Intelligence gathering is ongoing. The families will be informed as soon as there is progress.

”Despite those assurances, many in the camp say they feel forgotten.

“Government officials came here once, promised to help, and left,” said a
community elder Mallam Adamu.

“We are still waiting for the help they spoke about.”

As the sun set over the camp, women gathered under a neem tree for evening prayers. Among them was Mrs. Esiri, her daughter beside her, whispering softly.

“We pray for those still missing,” she said.

“Even if we can’t see them, we know God
can.”

For the families of Chibok, hope remains both a burden and a lifeline , the only thing that has survived the ashes of their homes.