The Operation Safe Corridor, OPSC, of the Federal Government is ostensibly designed to encourage “repentant” Boko Haram Islamic terrorists to surrender and accept the De-radicalisation, Rehabilitation and Reintegration, DRR, programme of the Nigerian Army.
The President Muhammadu Buhari administration created it in September 2015. At least, three batches numbering over 1,000 have been reunited with their communities, and the Army has debunked allegations that some of them have been enrolled in our armed services.
We agree that it is possible for some Islamist fighters to repent and accept the government’s reform programme. After all, some of them might have joined the insurgents through conscription or misguided brainwashing or to earn a living. However, we still prefer that extreme caution is exercised in handling this very sensitive matter.
How do we determine that a person who trained as a suicide bomber, slaughtered fellow human beings, and had sworn to overthrow Nigeria’s constitutional order has repented from an ideology which is deeply rooted in religion?
Is it not possible for the terrorists to package some of their diehards to accept the DRR programme in order to re-infect the society from within and strike at a convenient time?
What is the hurry in returning these dangerous elements to society when the war on terror is still being stoked by a proliferation of terrorist outfits funded from evil enclaves in the Middle East? The usual practice is to keep prisoners of war, POWs, in secured holding facilities, bring some of them to justice for their war crimes and consider rehabilitation when victory is won.
While we hear of severe punishments (including executions) meted to captured Boko Haram fighters in Niger and Chad, Nigeria under Buhari is more eager to pamper, rehab and release people who have killed over 30,000 and displaced about 2.5 million people in the past eleven years.
What about the millions of other young potential terrorists being radicalised through the teaching of some Islamic sects in the Almajiri schools, especially in the North? These impoverished and unemployed youths are potential “feeder” groups for insurgents.
We strongly believe that without good governance firmly rooted in social justice and inclusion that makes life more meaningful for the grassroots, terrorist groups will never run short of willing recruits.
The Federal Government and the Islamic establishment in Nigeria must admit that Boko Haram terrorism is a product of bad governance and impoverishment of the masses by their leaders.
If we do not give people a sense of belonging within our constitutional order, more and more young people will violently explore other alternatives to topple the system.
It is near-impossible for a radicalised mind to repent and re-join a perceived failed system that refuses to change. The DRR programme is like pouring water into a basket.
