Hassan Sylla Bakari Ben, Chadian Minister of Communication has said that 40% of weapons seized from Boko Haram fighters are French made. The Chadian politician and minister made the declaration during a news conference he held jointly with his Cameroonian counterpart on Wednesday night in Yaounde. Minister Hassan Sylla Bakari stressed that, “we do not designate a country as supplier of arms to Boko Haram. We just show images of weapons and ammunition confiscated from Boko Haram fighters. My country will continue to show these images so that those who manufacture these weapons know they do not end up where they should be”.

The statement by the Chadian minister created some sensation in the conference hall as officials from the Cameroon Ministry of Communication looked embarrassed. Cameroon Concord gathered that after a brief consultation between some leaders of the Cameroon Ministry of Communications, one of them came blowing in the ear of the Chadian minister who attempted to rectify the situation. For his part, Cameroon’s Communication minister Issa Tchiroma Bakary observed that “African countries do not manufacture weapons, but buy them from countries like France, Russia, the United States”.