Reintegrating repented Boko Haram terrorists disastrous to Borno, says Governor Zulum

• Cameroun to repatriate 82 ex-rebels, families
• IGP stresses retraining of officers for better crime fight

Governor Babagana Zulum, at the weekend, declared that the surrendering of 1,000 repentant Boko Haram terrorists had left Borno State and its people with two extremely difficult security dimensions.

According to him, the current security situation, if not collectively handled by stakeholders, could lead to a civil rebellion.

He raised the fears while addressing military officers and community leaders at Bama and Gwoza.

The governor maintained that the security situation required the coming together of stakeholders, including representatives of the attacked communities in all of the state’s 27 local councils.

RELATEDLY, Cameroun is to repatriate 82 repented Boko Haram and their family members to Nigeria.

Director, Disbarment, Demobilisation and Reintegration Committee (DDRC) in the Francophone nation, Francis Fai Yengo, said 967 terrorists had been profiled for reintegration and repatriation to their respective countries.

He clarified that they were among hundreds that repented after their leader, Abubakar Shekau, was killed in Sambisa Forest.

While announcing the repatriation over the weekend in Meri, Yengo stated: “We plan to deport the former fighters as the influx has overwhelmed our reintegration centres along the border areas with Nigeria.”

He pointed out that the DDRC centre housed 967 former jihadist militants, adding that of the 260 that arrived last week, 82 are ex-Boko Haram male fighters.

The others, he stated were their wives and children.

“Over 200 ex-militants are Nigerians that converged at our reintegration centres,” Yengo added.

The director continued: “I’ve been directed by President Paul Biya to meet the former militants and evaluate their needs before handing them over to Nigerian authorities.”

He noted that the surrendering was on the increase daily, particularly on the border areas with Nigeria, Chad and Niger republics.

The Camerounian official explained that after the profiling, the ex-insurgents would be returned to Nigeria, restating: “We’ve good relationship with the neighboring country.”

SIMILARLY, the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Usman Alkali Baba, has submitted that constant retraining of officers remained the panacea to professionalism and effective tacking of insecurity.

He spoke at the weekend when he hosted 51 participants of the Senior Leadership Command Course SLCC 03/2021 of the National Institute of Police Studies (NIPS) in Abuja.

Baba stressed that the training and retraining of police personnel was nonnegotiable if they must discharge duties efficiently and effectively.

The IGP observed that policing a diverse society like Nigeria was challenging, imploring officers to deploy their experiences for the tackling of the nation’s multifaceted problems.

He regretted that unemployment was fuelling criminality in the country, urging immediate redress.

In his remarks, NIPS Director-General, Prof. Akin Ogunsakin, lauded Baba for training the participants, clarifying that 41 of the 51 trainees were from Nigeria and the rest being Sierra Leoneans.