1, 400 repentant Boko Haram suspects released

[Edoman]

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[color=var(--atc)]1, 400 repentant Boko Haram suspects released

February 11, 2020







The Borno State Government has said about 1,400 repentant Boko Haram suspects have been released by the military and rehabilitated into society.[/color]

The Borno State Commissioner for Information, Babakura Jato, told The PUNCH during an interview on Monday that 1, 400 had been released in three tranches since the ‘Operation Safe Corridor’ programme began.

The PUNCH reports that although the programme began in 2016, it wasn’t until 2018 that the release of the suspects began.

Jato said most of the persons released were not actually Boko Haram members but were relatives of terrorists or persons found in the wrong place at the wrong time.

The commissioner said, “There have been a series of releases. They were released in three tranches. The first set was released during Governor Shettima’s time while two sets have been released under Prof. Zulum.

“The total number of persons released is 1,400. Out of the 1,400, the majority of them are cleared suspects. These were people who were suspected of being members of Boko Haram and it was discovered that they were not.

“The rest are children of Boko Haram or actual Boko Haram members. I cannot give you a breakdown of the figure now for security reasons.”

The government’s spokesman said he was aware of allegations that some of those released had gone back to terrorism but argued that most of these allegations were mere speculations.

Jato said after the training, they were handed over to the Borno State Government for proper integration into their communities.

He stated that if any person was rejected by his community for being a former Boko Haram member, the government would resettle that person.

[Edoman]

'FG is setting our killers free’– soldiers kick as 1,400 Boko Haram suspects are released

Some soldiers at the war front in the north-east have expressed disappointment over the release of 1,400 ”repentant” Boko Haram suspects.

Babakura Jato, commissioner of information in Borno state, on Monday, told The PUNCH that 1,400 had been released in three tranches since Operation Safe Corridor programme was launched.

Operation Safe Corridor is an initiative for the deradicalisation and rehabilitation of all ex-Boko Haram members.

Jato said the majority of them are cleared suspects.

“These were people who were suspected of being members of Boko Haram and it was discovered that they were not,” he said.

“The rest are children of Boko Haram or actual Boko Haram members. I cannot give you a breakdown of the figure now for security reasons.”

He also said he was aware of the allegation that some of those released had gone back to terrorism, but he added that some of these claims were mere speculation.

Reacting to the development, soldiers, who confirmed the release of the suspects to TheCable on Tuesday, said they did not understand why suspected Boko Haram members are being released in large numbers.

“A lot of soldiers are not happy about this. We were there at the Maimalari barracks when some of these Boko Haram people were released,” one of the soldiers said.

“The authorities are releasing them, but Boko Haram are killing soldiers that they capture. This does not make sense to us at all. We continue to sweep across the bushes to flush these people out, and then the government will release them. Does that not amount to wasted efforts?”

Another soldier said he believes most of the released suspects find their way back to crime.

“You wonder why Boko Haram members are on the increase? When we arrest them and bring them here, some top people would come and start negotiating their release. But, I will tell you some of these so-called suspects are returning to the bush and they were never repentant.”

Speaking with TheCable on the matter, Onyema Nwachukwu, defence headquarters’ spokesperson, said the releases were in line with Operation Safe Corridor.

“We’ve made some releases, that’s the truth. We should know what the operation is about. But take note, it’s not that we capture Boko Haram suspects and then go back and release them. No,” he said.

The operation he said is under the direct supervision of the defence headquarters and managed in conjunction with 13 civil organisations.

“The civil organisations involved in the operation include UNICEF, International Office on Migration (IOM) and relevant government ministries and security agencies. Not left out of the oversight structure of the operation is the Gombe state govt where the DRR facility is located. As a testimony to the effectiveness of the Safe Corridor initiative, so far, about 800 ex Boko Haram fighters who would have unleashed unimaginable terror on citizens have been admitted and out of which 287 of them have been successfully rehabilitated and reintegrated into society, with many still undergoing the DRR programme,” he said.

At the launch of the operation in 2016, the military said the aim is to rehabilitate and reintegrate repentant Boko Haram members back into society.

https://www.thecable.ng/fg-is-setting-our-killers-free-soldiers-kick-as-1400-boko-haram-suspects-are-released

[Edoman]

"The only repentant Boko Haram is a dead one" Reno Omokri says as he condemns the government for releasing 1,400 "repentant" Boko Haram suspects






Reno Omokri has written to oppose the pardon granted to "repentant" Boko Haram suspects.
 
It was revealed that the Federal Government has released about 1, 400 suspected Boko Haram terrorists and this angered a number of Nigerians.
 
Former aide of ex-president Goodluck Jonathan, Reno Omokri reacted to this by asking how the government expect the families of those killed by these terrorists to feel.
 
He also reminded his followers of the Boko Haram terrorist who was pardoned then went on to kill "countless Nigerians" after his release.
 
Reno wrote: "This government killed 347 Shiite men, women, children and infants, yet they had no problem releasing 1400 ‘repentant’ Boko Haram. @Google Shuaibu Moni, a released Boko Haram member who went on to kill countless Nigerians AFTER his release. The only repentant Boko Haram is a dead one!"
 

 
Sharing a photo of soldiers killed by Boko Haram being buried, he added: 
 

How will the parents, widows and orphans of fallen Nigerian soldiers feel when they watch the killers of their sons, husbands and fathers, being released by a government that promised to defeat Boko Haram in 3 months, on the lousy excuse that the Boko Haramites have now repented? Not only are they released, they are first rehabilitated. Is there any rehabilitating camp for the widows and orphan children of the soldiers that Boko Haram killed? No! Yet, these widows and orphans will watch as the Buhari administration rehabilitate the Boko Haram members who killed their husband and fathers. 1400 of them. Where is the justice in that? The Only Repentant Boko Haram Member is a Dead One!

 

 
Sharing a sad story of an orphan whose father was killed by Boko Haram, he wrote:
 

I had planned to retire and focus on evangelism and my #RenosNuggets going forward, but today, I received a phone call from an orphan, whose father was killed fighting Boko Haram, and she was crying over General Buhari’s release of 1400 repentant Boko Haram members. The Buhari administration does not have a single rehabilitation camp for widows and orphans of Nigerian soldiers who died fighting Boko Haram. Some of the families are kicked out of the barracks after their breadwinner dies at the hand of Boko Haram. They have a bleak future. Only for them to put on the TV and watch Boko Haram members in rehabilitation camps, pending their release to the loving arms of their own wives and children. Buhari is giving a future to those who took their futures away! My conscience will not permit me to keep quiet any longer. As at today, February 11, 2020, #BuhariTormentor is BACK!

 
Apostle Johnson Suleman also condemned this, writing:
 

Heard that 1400 repentant boko haram members have been released.I want to believe it's not true.what will be the motivation for soldiers to risk their lives fighting a sect that will always be later released?.this is kindergarten leadership at its peak,if it's true.very wrong..