By Linus Akomolafe
With plans by the Federal government of Nigeria to reintegrate over one thousand repentant Boko Haram commanders who surrendered last weekend to troops of Operation Hadin Kai (OPHK) of the Nigerian Army, residents in Lagos have called for quick reversal of the plan.
Some of the repentant commanders were seen holding card board papers with the plea that Nigerians should forgive them.Kehinde Olatunji, a trader in Ikeja who spoke to IkejaBird said such decisions by the government should be discouraged as it would mar the peaceful existence of Nigerians.
“The government are not suppose to do that. They are suppose to put them together in a camp and observe them for seven years before thinking of bringing them back to the community. It will make people afraid because we are not sure if they are genuine or not,” she said.
According to Obinna, the commanders were apprehended and decided to seek Nigerians forgiveness and that if they were not apprehended they would have been in the forest laughing attacks.
He said: ” These terrorist members are probably part of an arrest made and the government brought them forward forgiveness thinking others would come out and stop the killings. It won’t work. They should be kept far from the people.”
On a contrary, according to the former secretary of newspapers distributors association of Nigeria, Alhaji Busari, terrorist members who confessed and seeks forgiveness should be pardoned by all and made pay for his sims before reintegration.”
They are Nigerians if we like that fact or not and must be treated as one since they are coming out to surrender. It is just like a prisoner who just served his jail terms and coking back to the society.But they should be made to pay for their sins,” he said.
Meanwhile, the plea by the Boko Haram commanders and plans by the Federal Government to re-integrate them into the society has many wondered why terrorists should be treated with respect while secessionists are being hounded.
Recall that members of the sect have launched a war against the country for over 12 years now, killing thousands of Nigerians and destroying properties running into billions of dollars.
But at their parade at Hadin Kai operational base in Borno State, the sect commanders bore placards bearing their plea for forgiveness from Nigerians.
However, Onyema Nwachukwu, Army spokesperson, confirmed in a statement that among those who surrendered with their families was Musa Adamu, a chief bomb expert for the insurgents.
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