Governor of Borno State, Babagana Zulum, has faulted the federal government’s amnesty program for ‘repentant’ Boko Haram members, saying it is not working.
According to the governor, the program tagged ‘Operation Safe Corridor,’ has only made the state more unsafe as the ‘repentant’ Boko Haram members who were reintegrated into the society, have become moles who facilitate attacks against them.
The Borno state Governor who spoke at the North-East Governors’ Forum meeting in Bauchi on Thursday March 4, alleged that some of the repentant terrorists who passed through the Operation Safe Corridor program rejoin the terror group after carefully studying the various security arrangements in their host communities during the reintegration process.
He said: “Another aspect of the war against the insurgency that needs to be urgently reviewed or modified, is the issue of deradicalisation of Boko Haram terrorists, who have been captured or have willingly surrendered themselves to the authorities.
“It has been confirmed that the concept of deradicalisation or Safe Corridor is not working as expected. Quite often, those who have passed through the Safe Corridor initiative, or have been deradicalised, usually go back and rejoin the terror group after carefully studying the various security arrangements in their host communities, during the reintegration process.
“In addition, the host communities where the reintegration process is going on usually resent the presence of Boko Haram terrorists, even if they have been deradicalised, because of the despicable and atrocious activities they have committed in the past.
“So the idea of deradicalisation, as currently being implemented, needs to be reviewed because the main goals and the underlying objectives behind the initiative are not being achieved.”
Zulum who noted that only those who were forcefully recruited should undergo the deradicalisation, faulted the delay on prosecution of insurgents.
“On the prosecution of terrorists, we must make efforts to avoid the current encumbrances and intricacies associated with the process, which usually takes considerable time, by urging the appropriate federal authorities to devolve the powers of the minister of justice and attorney-general of the federation to state attorneys-general in order to facilitate the prosecution process.”
