Confab divided over arrest of 486 Northern “travelers” in Aba

A delegate raised concerns over a possible infiltration of the South by Boko Haram

The delegates at th ongoing National Conference on Thursday exchanged strong words over the arrest of 486 travelers by troops from the Nigerian Army in Aba; a commercial city in Abia State.
The military announced the arrest of the travelers and said it was investigating them for alleged Boko Haram links. They said an identified Boko Haram kingpin was among the travelers.
Trouble started when the South-South delegate, Sergent Awuse raised a motion of urgent national importance, drawing the attention of the Conference to the degenerating security situation in the country.
Mr. Awuse had expressed concern about the safety of Nigerians but noted that the arrest of 486 persons who claimed to be travelers going to Port Harcourt to seek jobs at 2:00 am was worrisome.
He drew attention to a publication in the media where Goverrnor Kashim Shetima of Borno State was quoted to have said that if Boko Haram succeeded in over running the North-East, the terrorists would try to overrun other parts of the country.