The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Army, Senator Ali Ndume, has said he does not agree that the surrendered Boko Haram terrorists should be given blanket amnesty or pampered by the Nigerian Army.
Ndume representing Borno South Senatorial District said the repentant terrorists should not receive a pat on the back.
The Senator affirmed this while speaking as a guest on Channels Television.
A few days ago, the Nigerian Army released a statement, saying the recent offensive operations by troops of Operation Hadin Kai led the Boko Haram and the Islamic State of West Africa Province terrorists in the North-East to surrender en masse, a report which stirred various reactions as to what became of the “repentant” terrorists.
Senator Ndume said he was not surprised at the development due to the hostile environment the troops had created for the terrorists.
“It didn’t come to me as a surprise actually, because I’ve been saying for a long time that the armed forces and other security agencies of the country are handicapped. Otherwise, they have the capacity and the ability to prosecute this war.
“Now that what they need is given to them, you can see the results within this short time. And I’m expecting more.
“It is only that, as I have said before, there shouldn’t be blanket amnesty and pampering treatment to those who have surrendered,” Ndume said.
According to him, what needs to be done now is to ensure that the seemingly apologetic insurgents are carefully profiled without any rush to have them return to their communities.
The federal lawmaker was of the opinion that the army should be more focused on ensuring that the Boko Haram war was brought to an end even faster than it had been projected in various quarters.
The lawmaker expressed confidence in the new leadership of the armed forces, establishing that the well-coordinated inter-agency cooperation between the country’s security agencies would yield favourable results for all.
“I think it is a welcome development and I have confidence that more is to be seen with the new leadership and the new cooperation,” he said.
