The recent call by Governor Kasheem Shettima for amnesty for Boko Haram is totally irresponsible, dangerous, and counter-productive. It will lead to a calamitous precedence that Nigeria may never be able to recover from.
We read with dismay and total trepidation, a senseless and outrageous statement made by Governor Kasheem Shettima during his inauguration on 29th May 2015. Unlike his Yobe state counterpart, Governor Shettima is a man most Nigerians have learned to love and respect recently for his achievements in Borno state, and his steadfastness in morally and materially supporting the Army and the CJTF. So it came to all of us as a total shock that the same man is asking for amnesty for Boko Haram. For the avoidance of doubt, here is the exact offending statement made by the Governor.
"It become imperative that willing members of boko haram sect that want to come out of the bush MUST be given opportunity to be de-radicalised and rehabilitated to became useful citizens of the society"
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We are not in the business of condemning people for making genuine mistakes. We don't want to unjustifiably malign, impugn, and cast innuendo on the integrity of Governor Kashim Shettima. We want to give the Governor the benefit of the doubt that this is just a mistake, albeit a very bad one that has far wider repercussions than he cares to think.
If we start giving Boko Haram amnesty now, where on earth will it end? Doing so will amount to letting the genie out of the bottle. Before we realise, His Excellency PMB will be inundated with requests to pardon the treacherous and treasonous Boko Haram grandmasters like GEJ, Ihejerika, Alex Badeh, SAS, Sambo Dasuki, along with their foreign collaborators. Eventually, the entire process of comprehensively eliminating Boko Haram and unraveling its root causes, as promised by PMB, becomes compromised and diluted. This is one fatal mistake that we must avoid at all cost.
His Excellency PMB has promised to relocate the Command and Control Centre of fighting Boko Haram to Maiduguri. This is an excellent move, and Nigerians highly commend PMB for making this decision as the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces. We are confident that Boko Haram will very soon be made to feel the true and full might of the once glorious Nigerian Military. The rag-tag marauding terror barbarians will be comprehensively defeated – God willing. Anything short of comprehensively wiping out Boko Haram from the surface of the earth and bringing its proponents to bear the full arms of the law is considered treason by itself.
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Borno state will be restored to its former glory, but that glory does not start by granting amnesty to any terrorists. Instead of asking for amnesty for Boko Haram or any group of criminals for that matter, let us mobilise ourselves to staunchly support our new head of mission, His Excellency PMB. Let us pray for his good health, long life, and ability to govern with justice, equity, and fair-play. As he himself so eloquently put it, he belongs to everybody, yet he also belongs to nobody.
May God save Nigeria and Nigerians. Amen.
Dr. Idris Ahmed.
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31/05/2015.
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