The Shehu of Borno, Abubakar El-Kanemi has revealed that Boko Haram insurgents are targeting traditional rulers in that state, and has resulted in the death of 13 district heads.

The monarch revealed that the deadly Boko Haram and other militants in the region have moved to local governments, and they are killing people.

This claim by the Shehu of Borno is in contrast with the claims by the government and the security heads that the insurgents are being neutralized.

The monarch revealed this on Monday while receiving members of the Senate Committee on Special duty that visited Borno to assess the works being done by the North East Development Commission (NEDC).

“Gradually, they moved their operations from Maiduguri to local government headquarters and other towns within Borno. In the course of their operations, the emirate council lost about 13 district heads in addition to many ward heads, who were killed in their respective domains,” he said.

He added that, “The activities of the criminal elements have not deterred our district and village heads from being proactive in reporting their activities to the security agencies.”

He further called for more funding for the NEDC to help rebuild the region that has been devastated by the insurgents.

“I want to call for more funding for the commission to enable it to facilitate the reconstruction of destroyed communities and intervention programmes towards empowering all IDPs. The call became necessary in view of the huge destruction and losses incurred in the state as a result of the crises in the last 11 years.”