With over 20,000 lives wasted by
the Boko haram sect, millions of dollars’ worth of property destroyed, more
than five hundred thousand people displaced from their homes, insecurity is
unarguably the biggest headache facing the Nigerian government.
The trillions of naira wasted in
reining in this murderous sect would have found better use in other critical
sectors of the economy. Despite spending over 3 trillion in the insurgency war,
Boko Haram continues to run rampage killing scores of innocent citizens with
IED’s....
The need for fresh ideas in the
insurgency war has become more urgent with the renewed audacity of the
terrorists since the successful transfer of power to the opposition party. Over
500 people are said to have been killed since May 29th. This is not just
statistics; these are human lives that have been wasted.
The news of President Buhari’s
readiness to negotiate with the sect on a possible trade off for the #Chibokgirls was received with mixed feelings at home. With
what is known back home as negotiation being the amnesty program that
turned militants into overnight millionaires, it is not surprising that people
are kicking against any form of negotiation that will see a group that has
nearly brought the African giant to her kneels evading justice for their
heinous crimes against humanity.
This will not be the first time
the government will be exploring this kind of option. During the Jonathan
administration, this same attempt ended up with officials embarking on a
somewhat jamboree trip to the Saudi to discuss with Boko Haram leaders on a
ceasefire deal, a phantom deal that its only result was the death of hundreds
of people who were murdered because the military were deceived to lower their
arms.
While many will prefer that
military action should continue and that the gains made by the outgone
government in the twilight of its dispensation be sustained, current realities
has shown that military action alone cannot guarantee total victory against the
sect. Some even want the government to adopt the “we don’t negotiate with
terrorists” stance of the US, forgetting that we do not have the strength of
their armory or the swiftness of their intelligence gathering and that such
grandstanding will continue to strain our already thinning resources.
No responsible father will
abandon his daughters in the den of murderous abductors for this long when
there are things he could do to negotiate their safe return. No right thinking
government will recalcitrantly stick to hostilities as the only option to seeking
lasting peace and security for its citizens. The humongous resources already
expended on this war and the collateral damage occasioned therewith makes a
case for negotiation to be included in the strategy for ending this
insurrection. What must be stressed however is that such negotiations must
never compromise the freedom of citizens or the secularity of the Nation State.
In this regard, the present
government must be wary of falling into the booby trap of the sect. While it is
urgent and important to secure the safe return of our daughters, any
negotiation that will include amnesty for the terrorists or a total exoneration
of the heinous crimes they’ve committed against humanity will be a very bad
idea. Such deal will make nonsense of our laws and set a bad precedence for how
crimes are fought in our clime.
President Buhari should continue
the military onslaught against the terrorists while exploring opportunities for
a possible discussion with the sect. But the Nigerian state cannot negotiate
with the terrorists from a position of weakness and cannot afford to make
concessions that will legitimatize the evil called terrorism.
Honest Offor
Twitter Handle @honest4change
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