The dreaded Boko Haram sect has agreed to release some of the abducted 219 Chibok girls, in exchange for 18 of its top members.
The new condition, according to sources, was part of a deal reportedly sealed by negotiators but are are strong indications that the deal may not materialize, after all.
While the government wanted freedom for all the 219 Government Secondary School, Chibok girls, the sect said it would free only 30.
Boko Haram sent the list of its commanders and the 30 girls to be swapped to a minister, who is also a lawyer, an elderstatesman and a key facilitator of peace with the sect, Comrade Shehu Sani, who is also the President of the Civil Rights Congress of Nigeria, according to sources.
The list, it was learnt, was sent after secret talks between a government delegation and a Boko Haram commander, who is being detained in Kuje Prison in Abuja. But there was no confirmation of this last night.
According the sources, the delegation, whose membership was kept under wrap, discussed with the commander, who is simply described as Umar.
One of the sources said: “Some top officials met with Umar about two weeks ago in Kuje Prison to discuss issues connected to the fate of the Chibok girls.
“We heard some inmates sharing this information that the sect might swap the girls with Umar and others. But all the details are still secret because Umar keeps to himself a lot.”
But another source said that “The delegation had a fruitful negotiation with Umar, who is one of the highly-rated commanders of Boko Haram. The group assured Umar of a swap and he has been looking forward to it.
Some security agents are said to have given “cautious advice” to the government when there was “no full assurance that all the girls will be released”.
“So, technically, the release of 30 girls was unacceptable to the government based on the advice of some security agents,” another source said.
“You can see why Nigerians should stop blaming Boko Haram from continuously keeping these girls in captivity. What is of concern now is to get even these 30 girls out to prove to the whole world that they are alive.”
Earlier in May, Sani explained why he and some Boko Haram contacts had audience with ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo in Abeokuta, adding that the session was meant to open a new channel for dialogue with the sect to rescue the girls.
It was not immediately clear if the latest talks had any connection with the repackaging or not.
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