20m out-of-school children potential Boko Haram recruits, Obasanjo warns

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has warned that the nation’s disturbing out-of-school children were potential recruits for future Boko Haram that could worsen the prevailing insecurity in the country.

Obasanjo gave the warning yesterday while inaugurating two roads executed by Governor Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State. Citing the World Bank data, he said the 20 million out-of-school children were 10 per cent of Nigeria’s population.

His words; “That is 10 per cent of our population that should be in school that are not in school. Governor, your royal highnesses, brothers and sisters, that is recruitment for future Boko Haram. Nobody needs to tell us that.

“Apart from being the 10 per cent of our population that are not being equipped to develop their innate capacity to be able to serve themselves, their families, their communities, we are also preparing them to be recruited in ten, twelve, fifteen years to come for whatever form of Boko Haram it will be at that time. Whatever form of banditry it will be at that time, it will not be kidnappers in the usual sense of it. They may just be coming home and snatchers of people from their homes. Think about it.”

Obasanjo commissioned the dualised 17-kilometre Bauchi town to Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa International Airport and the dualised seven-kilometreAwala to Maiduguri roads.

MEANWHILE, the Minister of Defence, Mohammed Badaru Abubakar, yesterday said peace was returning to Plateau State. He submitted after a meeting with critical stakeholders on the crisis on the plateau.