As more Boko Haram insurgents give up their weapons and ammunition to the government and give up acts of terrorism and banditry, an investigation carried out by AREWA PUNCH revealed that there are serious worries that the female members of this group are becoming more and more unable to find male spouses.
Additional research shows that even as the remorseful terrorists are reintegrating into their different home communities, the women have bemoaned that it has been hard for them to get married since their return since law-abiding men in the community shun them like the plague.
Numerous community leaders are quite concerned about this new issue, according to Arewa PUNCH.
According to official documents indicate that 162,000 rebels and their families have surrendered. However, no information regarding the number of spinsters, divorcees, or widows among them is provided.
Although some of the women have been expressing their covert wish for suitors to marry or remarry them, some of the community leaders have complained that their men are afraid to pursue any kind of romantic relationship with the surrendered female insurgents.
“These ladies desperately want to marry or remarry, but men seem scared of them, as no suitors approach them with such proposal,” a ward head at Old Maiduguri, Modu Grema Wakil, complained to Arewa PUNCH in Maiduguri, on Monday,
“I have not compiled the number of such ladies, but they send messages to us as community leaders over the matter,” he said.
Wakil continued: “Our fear is that if these women and girls do not get the men to marry, they may be tempted to renege on their repentance vow from terror activities and return to the bush.
“But when they get suitors and marry or remarry in the law-abiding society, other girls and women still in the bush could be encouraged to surrender and come back home.”