Truck drivers operating along a key international trade corridor in Borno State have expressed frustration over the persistent burning of their vehicles by Boko Haram insurgents.
The truckers, who transport essential goods, including fish and livestock, between Maiduguri and border communities such as Monguno, Marte and Kukawa, said the attacks have devastated their livelihoods.
According to the leader of the drivers' group, Abba Muhammad, the dangerous stretch begins between Merari and Gajiram villages.
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"They always intercept our trucks between Gajiram and Merari and burn them. More than 20 trailers and trucks have been burnt within two months," Muhammad told Daily Trust.
He said the attacks had intensified in recent days, adding that between Friday and Monday, five vehicles--three trailers and two trucks--were set ablaze.
Muhammad added that a prominent trailer owner, Alhaji Good Going, suffered heavy losses after two of his trailers were destroyed by insurgents within three days--on Saturday and Monday.
Another driver, Malam Ali Zaki, recounted how a truck loaded with dry fish and heading to Maiduguri was burnt by the attackers.
He added that his own commercial vehicle, purchased by his father after the family fled Doron Baga following previous Boko Haram attacks, was also destroyed.
The truckers called on security agencies to replicate the patrol strategy currently deployed along the Gwoza and Chibok roads on the volatile Monguno highway.
