- Safiu Kehinde
A survivour of prolonged captivity by the Boko Haram terrorist group, Fayina Akilawus, has recounted how she escaped from her captives after four years of being enslaved over her refusal to renounce her faith.
Fayina recounted her harrowing ordeal while speaking on Arise TV’s Prime Time programme on Wednesday.
The Adamawa state indigene was abducted in October 2020 while travelling back to Maiduguri.
She was taken into the forest near the Chad-Cameroon border where she spent more than four years in captivity.
Fayina escaped on October 24, 2024, trekking for days before reaching safety.
Recounting her, she narrated how her bus was intercepted by the Boko Haram insurgents on her way back from her introduction ceremony.
The terrorists reportedly forced all the passengers to recite Muslim prayer which she was unable to do, leading to her abduction.
“They took me to their own vehicle. I was begging them, but they said no I should go. They pushed me inside their vehicle and I kept quiet. At that spot, we were three in number. We were all captured from different vehicles.
“They took us to their forest. We started the journey on a Monday, 19th of October 2020. On the 21st, we arrived at their camp.’
“When we got there, we met with their boss. He asked for our names. He did a video and asked for our names.
“After three days, he came and said we have to plead with the Federal Government for our release. When we told them of our own background, they said they know our families will not pay the kind of money they want except the government.
“We did the video and was even expecting them to tell us that okay government has settled us. We wait for up till seven months, nothing.
“I don’t think they sent the video because if they had sent it, people would mention it when I came out. Nobody said anything about it.
“We were in a cage, about 11 of us, where do come to preach and tell us the Islamise that our religion is not the real religion.
“We said no that we will not convert. So, they said in their own law, if we did not convert to Islam, you will become their slave.
“We would do house chores and other things for them. We carried firewood, fetched water, and did all sorts of work.
“It wasn’t only once. They normally came to our place and said they were preaching to us, that they wanted us to become better people in life. They told us that if we accepted their religion, life would be better for us,” she said.
The Boko Haram survivour said she resisted the pressure for nine months, alongside other captives who also refused to convert.
Eventually, she said, the captors decided to separate them and distribute them to different homes to serve as slaves.
“We were in that place for nine months before they started separating us. Since we were not Islamised, they said they would separate each and every one of us and take us to their houses to become their slaves,” she said.
Fayina recounted her first attempted escape with another captive identified as Auntie Jumai.
They had tried to flee just days after arriving at the camp.
The two women reportedly trekked through the night, navigating bush paths and water routes.
However, their escape was cut short the following morning when they unknowingly walked into a settlement of one of the terrorists.
“From the time we arrived; Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, on Saturday night, around 7 p.m., Auntie Jumai, whom I was with from the place where we were captured, and I tried to escape.
“So, we escaped that Saturday night. We walked throughout the night. In the morning, when we heard a baby crying, we didn’t know there were families and children living there. When we heard the baby’s voice, we thought it was those armed men who used to raid cows. So, we greeted them with ‘Salam Alaikum’ and entered.” She narrated.
According to her, their unfamiliar dressing immediately raised suspicion, leading to their recapture.
“When we entered, the people came out and saw us. They started shouting because our dressing was different from theirs. They were shouting, asking, ‘Who are these people?’ Someone said her husband was not around.
“When we realised, we knew it was them again. They captured us and took us back. This first time, they didn’t chain us, but they beat us severely. The place we had trekked to was very far. From there, they beat us all the way back to the camp we had escaped from. It was at night, through the bush and through water.” She said.
Fayina however resolute on her quest to escape despite repeated punishment until her fifth attempt where she eventually succeeded.
“With God, all things are possible. We prayed, and God had mercy on us. I tried to escape once, twice, three times, four times.
“This was the fifth time. Whenever they caught me, they tied my legs with chains, motorcycle chains. I told myself I would keep trying until I succeeded,
“We had heard that escape was possible if you met the right people, but money was required,
“We had to pay ₦250,000. We sold some of their belongings and some things we bought ourselves. Sometimes they gave us small amounts of money, and we saved it.” She said.