Two years ago, the girls were kidnapped from their boarding school in Borno State and have been held by Boko Haram ever since. Talks have taken place between the government and the sect but the two sides have been unable to reach a deal on the release of the girls, leading to negotiations breaking down.
On Monday, US academic Professor John Paden published a biography of President Buhari titled Muhammadu Buhari: The challenges of leadership in Nigeria, which contained details of the Boko Haram offer. According to the book, the botched negotiations between Boko Haram and the federal government broke down as the government did not want to be held to ransom.
“Secret negotiations had been held regarding an exchange of Boko Haram prisoners for the girls. On several occasions, prisoners were taken to Maiduguri to facilitate an exchange but these negotiations stalled when Boko Haram demanded a ransom of €5bn for the girls.
“The dilemma for the Department of State Security, which was handling the negotiations, was that a military assault to rescue the girls would almost certainly result in their deaths at the hands of their Boko Haram captors. However, the Nigerian government was not going to accede to Boko Haram’s extra-ordinary demand for a vast sum of money which would no doubt be used to fund future attacks, the book read.
It added that the Chibok girls were not alone in their grim fate, as hundreds if not thousands, of persons had been captured by Boko Haram in the northeast. President Buhari decided that the military would need to continue degrading Boko Haram until he could tighten the noose around its Sambisa Forest hideout and bring a close end to its campaign.
Concerning the arrest of a former petroleum minister Diezani Alison-Madueke, the author said the ties between the president and ex-Prime Minister David Cameron made it possible. Britain's National Crime Agency arrested and quizzed Ms Alison-Madueke and four others on October 2, 2015 for alleged bribery and corruption and money laundering.
Other interesting details contained in the book include news that President Buhari got wind of the August 27, 1985 coup d’état against him as a military head of state but he did not foil it to avoid executing some senior army officers. Some of those closest to President Buhari at the time have subsequently argued that he did know a counter-coup was coming but calculated that to pre-empt this plan would have meant executing six or eight senior officers, which he was unwilling to do.
The book explained that President Buhari was detained after the 1985 coup in Akure and Benin from August 27, 1985 to December 1988. The book states that General Ibrahim Babangida also tried to look for ways to indict President Buhari personally but his integrity and grassroots popularity helped protect him.
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