The Nigerian Senate answered that question July 7 when it approved a resolution pointedly saying instead of a safe corridor, now we have a dangerous corridor. In other words, the OSC had never worked and never will. Senator Abdul Aziz Yat’Adua, who initiated the resolution, said insecurity in the country had worsened with serial abductions of innocent persons and killings of several military officers including lately retired Mayor General Rabe Abubakar. The resolution asked the federal government to stop the offer of reprieve and to let the terrorists face the music. The stats indicating the severity of the problem suggest the government may have underestimated what the nation is up against. According to Vice President Kashim Shettima, “combined, Boko Haram, ISWSP, Lakurawa, Mahmuda, Ansari and other insurgent groups have slaughtered more than 100,000 Nigerians.” National Bureau of Statistics estimates show that 2.24 million kidnappings occurred between May 2023 and April 2024, including the abduction of schoolchildren. During the same period, affected households paid an average ransom of N2.7 million. Now the ransom demand has risen to billions of naira.
What all this means is that the government has got it all wrong. Why this Tinubu administration appears stuck with it is difficult to understand, moreso that change for change sake is the swan song these days. The first indication of the wrongness of the government strategy is this report that some 10,000 “rehabilitated” terrorists had returned to the bush because they found the N100,000 free money the government was dashing inadequate. Meaning that it wasn’t so much remorse as money that brought them out of the forests in the first place. Government was rewarding criminality instead of punishing it. What a way to embolden those who do not only “maim and kill” law-abiding Nigerians but threaten Nigeria’s peace and corporate existence as well. For instance, under President Goodluck Jonathan, Boko Haram set up a parallel government in the 27 local government areas it had seized in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa States. They were not retaken by the Nigerian government until after Jonathan left office in 2015. Even now communities in some Northern states pay taxes to the terror groups.
So, why continue to spend the taxpayer’s hard earned money to pay people who are making life hellish for him? It makes no sense, however we look at it. A recent Punch editorial on this matter made a lot of sense to me. I, therefore, endorse its conclusion: “The Executive should heed the Senate’s resolution, suspend the pardon of insurgents and prosecute the war against terrorism with clarity, consistency and resolve. The only appropriate response to such crimes is the permanent removal of dangerous terrorists from society. Instead of rehabilitating terrorists, the government should channel its resources towards rehabilitating the true victims of terrorism, including displaced communities, bereaved families, injured security personnel and the families of those who made the ultimate sacrifice.”
The Nigerian Senate answered that question July 7 when it approved a resolution pointedly saying instead of a safe corridor, now we have a dangerous corridor. In other words, the OSC had never worked and never will. Senator Abdul Aziz Yat’Adua, who initiated the resolution, said insecurity in the country had worsened with serial abductions of innocent persons and killings of several military officers including lately retired Mayor General Rabe Abubakar. The resolution asked the federal government to stop the offer of reprieve and to let the terrorists face the music. The stats indicating the severity of the problem suggest the government may have underestimated what the nation is up against. According to Vice President Kashim Shettima, “combined, Boko Haram, ISWSP, Lakurawa, Mahmuda, Ansari and other insurgent groups have slaughtered more than 100,000 Nigerians.” National Bureau of Statistics estimates show that 2.24 million kidnappings occurred between May 2023 and April 2024, including the abduction of schoolchildren. During the same period, affected households paid an average ransom of N2.7 million. Now the ransom demand has risen to billions of naira.
What all this means is that the government has got it all wrong. Why this Tinubu administration appears stuck with it is difficult to understand, moreso that change for change sake is the swan song these days. The first indication of the wrongness of the government strategy is this report that some 10,000 “rehabilitated” terrorists had returned to the bush because they found the N100,000 free money the government was dashing inadequate. Meaning that it wasn’t so much remorse as money that brought them out of the forests in the first place. Government was rewarding criminality instead of punishing it. What a way to embolden those who do not only “maim and kill” law-abiding Nigerians but threaten Nigeria’s peace and corporate existence as well. For instance, under President Goodluck Jonathan, Boko Haram set up a parallel government in the 27 local government areas it had seized in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa States. They were not retaken by the Nigerian government until after Jonathan left office in 2015. Even now communities in some Northern states pay taxes to the terror groups.
So, why continue to spend the taxpayer’s hard earned money to pay people who are making life hellish for him? It makes no sense, however we look at it. A recent Punch editorial on this matter made a lot of sense to me. I, therefore, endorse its conclusion: “The Executive should heed the Senate’s resolution, suspend the pardon of insurgents and prosecute the war against terrorism with clarity, consistency and resolve. The only appropriate response to such crimes is the permanent removal of dangerous terrorists from society. Instead of rehabilitating terrorists, the government should channel its resources towards rehabilitating the true victims of terrorism, including displaced communities, bereaved families, injured security personnel and the families of those who made the ultimate sacrifice.”
