An analysis of Borno State’s 2025 third-quarter budget performance has revealed that the government spent a total of ₦2.6 billion on livelihood support for repentant Boko Haram members between January and September.
Of that amount, ₦758.1 million was disbursed within the third quarter, covering July to September.
The budget report also highlights stark disparities in capital spending for the health sector. The Primary Healthcare Development Board received ₦2.076 billion out of its ₦8.7 billion allocation, while the Hospitals Management Board expended only ₦1.2 billion against its ₦10.5 billion budget.
However, frontline soldiers in Yobe and Borno have raised concerns that some government-backed repentant insurgents are compromising national security by leaking classified military information — including troop movements, weapon storage points, and alarm codes — to their former commanders.
One soldier alleged that the so-called repentant fighters regularly inform terrorists of camp routines, particularly between 4:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m., as well as the locations of armouries containing rifles, GMPGs, RPGs, PKTs, grenades, and explosives, leaving troops extremely vulnerable.
Despite the billions of naira invested in deradicalization and reintegration programs, attacks by remnants of Boko Haram and ISWAP continue to pose significant threats across the Northeast.
In April, Governor Babagana Zulum cautioned that Boko Haram elements were regrouping around Lake Chad and the Mandara Hills, noting that the state had received more than 300,000 repentant fighters in the last three years.
He appealed for increased military personnel, advanced air support, deployment of sophisticated drones and anti-drone systems, and a balanced use of kinetic and non-kinetic strategies to address the escalating insurgency.
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