A senator representing Borno South, Ali Ndume, said on Friday that he has never seen N1 billion or N5 billion cash in his life.

He stated that he never acted as an intermediary between the government and Boko Haram terrorists in Borno State.

Speaking on Channels TV, Mr Ndume responded to claims of his involvement in negotiation with the terrorists.

“I said it already that in my life I’ve never seen one billion at once in cash, not to talk of five billion.

“And so you know if we’re talking about five billion, five billion is not a small figure, even if it’s in the highest currency of one thousand,” he said. 

Mr Ndume questioned where such a huge amount of money would have been kept if it was paid in cash, asking which account the money was paid into.

He also asked who was responsible for the payment, referring to claims that the state government was involved.

“I told him that I do not support negotiation with Boko Haram, not to talk of paying ransom and that I think is where the problem started. 

“He started issuing out all these uncoordinated and contradictory statements about my involvement,” the lawmaker said.

Earlier, the president of Borno South Youth Alliance, Samaila Kaigama, arrested by by the State Security Service (SSS), linked the lawmaker to ransom negotiations for women and children abducted in Ngoshe.

The Peoples Gazette previously reported that troops freed 360 captives abducted by terrorists in the Ngoshe community, Gwoza Local Government Area of Borno State.