by Nicholas Ibekwe,
Nigerian troops fighting the terrorist Boko Haram group in the north-east state of Borno on Sunday intercepted two suspected members of the sect believed to be on a mission to procure drugs for libido enhancement, and treatment of sexually transmitted diseases and other illnesses.
A military insider told PREMIUM TIMES that the two men were intercepted by men of the 112 Task Force Battalion as they tried to cross from Anadawa village to Minari on motorcycle.
The troops, who mounted a roadblock at Kasasewa village, trailed the suspected terrorists to Anadawa and quickly opened fire on them after realising they were fully armed.
The two suspects, our sources said, died on the spot with troops recovering two FN rifles and 18 rounds of 7.62MM NATO ammunition from them.
Also recovered was a three-page shopping list which suggested the men were travelling to procure massive consignments of drugs, and other medical supplies.
Among the drugs listed for purchase were cartons of Viagra, used for treating erectile dysfunction, and MMC Sex Men, a known libido enhancer.
Also listed for purchase were three cartons of Maxman coffee enhancer for men as well as Viamax power coffee, known for increasing sexual desire in men.
The list also included an order for capsules that could be used to treat gonorrhoea, a venereal disease involving inflammatory discharge from the urethra or vagina.
Going by the list, the men also planned to procured various kinds of injectables ranging from oxytocine to anti-tetanus.
Several kinds of syrups were also listed for purchase.
The Nigerian Army had in September 2015 said it usually find condoms, hard drugs and sex-enhancing drugs in camps captured from Boko Haram insurgents by its troops.
The spokesperson for the Army, Sani Usman, said in a statement at the time that the findings underlined the military’s belief that most Boko Haram militants were not grounded in Islam and were not driven by Islamic ideology.
Mr. Usman, a colonel, said a lot of insurgents so far arrested could not even recite the Qu’ran, the holy book of Muslims.
He said those arrested by troops of Nigerian Army’s 3rd Division turned out to be suppliers of hard drugs and other stimulants to terrorists.
Mr. Usman said, “You will recall that sometimes ago we reported that ironically most of the Boko Haram terrorists captured by Nigerian military cannot read the Holy Qur’an, some of them cannot even recite the first chapter- Suratuh Al-Fatiha and yet they claimed they wanted to establish an ‘Islamic State’.
“When the Nigerian military captured their bases and training camps, they never found Qur’an or other Islamic books. What were mostly found were ammunition, local charms, condoms and all sort of drugs including sex enhancing ones in their enclaves.”
