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• How Maiduguri enjoyed peaceful celebration
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From Timothy Olanrewaju, Maiduguri
The Sallah celebrations in Maiduguri, Borno State, have come and gone, leaving behind a lasting memory. The celebrations began with thousands of Muslims observing the Eid prayers at designated locations.
The prayers were, however, overshadowed by a heavy security presence and characterised by fear among worshippers. Muslims retired home immediately after prayers, while non-Muslims stayed indoors out of fear.
These cautious moves were understandable. Ahead of the celebrations, there were heightened security alerts. The military alerted of a possible attack, while the police restricted the movement of tricycles between 6am and 12 mid-day to check any breach of security during the praying hours.
It should also not be forgotten that the state capital recorded multiple explosions on Monday, March 16, 2026, three days to the end of Ramadan month. That violence claimed 23 residents and injured 108 others.
Put together, this uncertain atmosphere left the streets empty and initially stole the shine off the celebrations. However, by evening of Sallah day, the script changed. Most streets earlier deserted hours after the Eid prayers came alive, booming with carefree fun as residents found courage and came out to rejoice.
Dressed in fine colours and linen, they showed off their joy and excitement in a special way, thronging out in numbers to various social event centres, eateries, shopping malls and other places in search of fun. It was a bazaar of happiness as the mood affected both the young and old, girl -child and mothers, Muslims and Christians, overshadowing the dark, unholy patches of the state.
Daily Sun gathered some residents were not bothered by the prevailing threats. Or so they claimed. They argued that Eid-fitri (Sallah) celebration happens once in a year and cannot be wished away by the fear of the insurgents.
Twenty-four-year-old Tijjani Bukar told Daily Sun: “We won’t allow these people (insurgents) to stop our Sallah celebrations. Allah has seen us through the Ramadan and we are happy. We are still in Sallah mood.”
He noted that he came to a mall with his friends to buy a few things and take pictures for memories, adding that they would continue the celebration till Friday, March 27, 2026, despite the threats.
Aminu Ahmed, who wore a rainbow coloured T-shirt, felt that it was wicked for anybody to target the Sallah celebrations to undertake evil acts: “The ungodly intentions of the insurgents would have been achieved if the streets were empty of happy people.”
Apart from visits to cherished locations and homes of beloved relatives, the week-long celebrations served the purpose of sharing gifts among families and friends. Families shared assorted meals and other gifts of love among themselves. The teenagers got gifts of money, biscuits, sweets, ice creams and different items that fed their fancies and excitement. Interestingly, these gifts sometimes came from strangers and non-family members as the act of giving was the hallmark of the celebrations.
One of such episodes was witnessed when some teenage celebrants walked up to some elderly men resting under a neem tree along a street in Old GRA, Maiduguri. “Happy Sallah celebrations,” they greeted in Kanuri language.
“Hope you had peaceful Sallah celebrations?” One of the men asked, paving way for further dialogue.
“Oh we are still in the mood of Sallah!” One of the teenagers hinted, without making further remarks. Sensing their expectations, one of the men dipped his hand into his pocket and brought out a few Naira notes and handed them over to the eldest of them, with strict instruction that they share the money equally.
Abubakar Saleh, a resident of the state disclosed that the crowd of young people and families that visited some of the shopping areas and favourite eateries in the city since Friday evening was enormous: “The traffic underlined the essence of peace in any society. People can only express their social, political, economic and religious energies in peace time.
“People can only go to Mosque or Church, market, work place and school when there is peace. Residents are expressing their joy after 30 days of fasting and this is good for us. We pray for peace in our state. The security situation is still fluid and uncertain. Residents should remain vigilant as they celebrate Sallah and the forthcoming Easter.”
The state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Nahum Daso, said the Commissioner of Police had placed all Divisional Police Officers (DPOs), tactical Commanders and Area Commanders on high alert: “There is also heavy deployment of personnel to places with large gathering of people to avert any security breach.
“Following directive of the CP, commanders are doing regular sensitisation of members of the public to have understanding of what is happening in town, also highlighting the areas they need to mitigate the threats of such as IEDs and other crimes.”
He said police worked with other stakeholders including religious leaders, heads of communities, community members and other security agencies to harness synergy: “We are strengthening our intelligence link. We are now proactive to work and ensuring we gathered first-hand information and actionable intelligence.
“When we do our threat analysis and highlight any challenge, then we can be able to act on it. Police will continue to provide security, not just during festivals but at all times.”
