Nigeria

Army commander explains why repentant Boko Haram members should be accepted

Friday, February 21, 2020 at 9:54 AM by Oluwatobi Bolashodun

- An army commander has spoken on behalf of repentant Boko Haram members, giving reasons why they should be accepted

- According to Major General Bamide Shafa, the best way to end the war against insurgency is dialogue

- The army commander explained that former insurgents renounced the Boko Haram group

In the wake of members of the insurgent groups laying down their arms and renouncing violence, Major General Bamide Shafa, the coordinator of Operation Safe Corridor, has revealed the government's reasons behind the adoption of a safe platform for repentant fighters.

According to The Sun, Shafa speaking at the Bulumkutu Rehabilitation Centre, Maiduguri, Borno state, told reformed and repentant insurgents numbering about 86 that war could not be won alone with force.

The army commander advocated that dialogue is the better way of ending the war, especially when the other side lays down their arms. He went on to note that the former insurgents on their own voluntarily surrendered and decided to return to society as normal citizens.

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Army commander reveals why repentant Boko Haram members should be accepted — Repentant Boko Haram members.
Source: UGC

He said this was made possible when Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari gave such people the opportunity through the Operation Safe Corridor programme which was established by the Defence Headquarters back in 2016.

The insurgents underwent intensive childcare, psycho-social training, and child care programme which was sponsored by UNICEF in conjunction with the Borno state government.

He said: “We must understand why some of them join the Boko Haram group in the first instance, sometimes not willingly.”

Shafa while on a tour of some of the communities to see how those rehabilitated at the Gombe Safe Corridor headquarters were doing, said: “I am happy to meet with you. We want you to use the opportunity given to you by the President through this programme to tell your former colleagues to lay down their arms and come out.”

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Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that on Thursday, February 20, the Nigerian Senate considered a bill seeking to establish an agency that would see to the rehabilitation, deradicalization, and integration of repentant insurgents in the country.

The bill which was read for the first time on the floor of the upper chamber was sponsored by Senator Ibrahim Gaidam of Yobe East senatorial district. The bill would be for insurgents who choose to a ceasefire.

Back in 2019, a group of Borno elders, led by ex-governor Kashim Shettima, frowned at the military’s operation called Operation Safe Corridor in Malam-Sidi. The former governor noted that the initiative was not well thought out.

In a related development, the Sultan of Sokoto, Muhammadu Sa’ad Abubakar lll, assured Nigerians that the country will win the battle against insurgency despite the current situation.

Sultan Abubakar gave the assurance on Thursday, February 20, when speaking at a conference on love and tolerance in Abuja. The sultan, who was represented by the Emir of Jiwa, Idris Musa, said the killings in the country have escalated to the point that the rich are avoiding the poor for fear of being harmed.