The plan by the Federal Government to establish the second Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration (DDR) camp in the country is misplaced, as it is bound to allow the festering of terrorism, rather than curbing it. According to Coordinator of the National Counter-Terrorism Centre (NCTC) in the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), Major General Adamu Garba Laka, the proposed camp is to be established in the North West zone through the Operation Safe Corridor of the military; and it is meant to encourage those described as “low-risk terrorists and bandits” to lay down their arms.
 
The first such centre or camp was established at Mallam Sidi in Gombe State. Laka spoke during a study visit to the centre, by a delegation of the Alliance de Sahel from Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger. Laka told the visitors that the de-radicalisation of terrorists started in 2015 at the Nigeria Correctional Service (NCS) and claimed that it had been replicated at other custodial centres due to its success. Gen. Laka also claimed that the camp had ‘graduated’ over 3,000 clients since inception.
 
The claims by the army stand controverted by reports of unceasing, even increasing, terrorist attacks on communities countrywide, which suggests that many terrorists released under this scheme find their way back to the terror camps. Besides, the scheme fails to address the issue of justice for both the criminals apprehended and their victims. It is, in fact, illogical to expect peace to reign in a community where perpetrators of terror have been pardoned and allowed to live freely with their victims, who have suffered irreparable losses through the killing and permanent incapacitation of their loved ones
 
Terrorism in the country and the perceived corruption that characterises the fight against it may never end until the Federal Government stops the controversial scheme and allows extant laws to deal with perpetrators of the heinous crime. The Terrorism (Prevention) Act 2011, as amended in 2013 and 2022, criminalises acts of terrorism and prescribes punishments, ranging from 20 years imprisonment to life imprisonment and the death penalty, depending on the severity of the offence. For the sake of peace and security, as well as the crucial need to get justice for the wronged, the government should begin a trial of suspected terrorists in its custody with a view to meting out the appropriate punishment to them upon conviction.
   
What is known as disarmament, demobilisation, and reintegration of hardened criminals into society smacks of a lack of seriousness on the part of the government to end terrorism. Judging by the steady and frequent attacks by terrorists on communities across the country, the scheme is evidently not working, despite claims by the military that lost youths are being recovered from the evil terrorist groups. As a country and government, there is a crucial need to ensure that killers do not go scot free. They must be made to pay for the crimes they committed. Otherwise, the country will be encouraging criminality.
 
The anti-terrorism law in Nigeria says any person who engages in any conduct in preparation to commit acts of terrorism or assists another person to commit acts of terrorism commits an offence and is liable on conviction to life imprisonment, or a stiffer penalty. It is the primary duty of the government to go after these terrorists and bring them to justice in line with the relevant law. The government cannot be working against itself, saying one thing and doing another.
 
For close to two decades now, terrorists, including the Boko Haram, ISWAP, and more recently, the Lakurawa groups in the northern part of the country, have launched an insurgency against the society under the guise of religion and some other ideologies that have all turned out to be no more than territorial expansionism and subversion of government. They have killed thousands of people, including security operatives, in cruel ways.
 
There are sufficient reasons to say that terrorists, like leopards, do not change their skin or their mission. In fact, they are encouraged to continue their criminal activities, given that law enforcement is low, and economic opportunities are few in the country. These, and other perquisites of life, are what they easily get in the course of their terrorist activities.  For those reasons, the DDR scheme will be an exercise in futility, and in fact aggravate insurgency, going by reports that many of the rehabilitated ones go back to camp with vintage knowledge of military operations and how they could be more efficient in perpetrating crime.
 
Laka spoke about the scheme being successful. He should explain to Nigerians what he means by success in this regard, or prove to the world how the programme is helping the escalating terrorism and general insecurity in the northern part of the country. Has insurgency reduced on account of the activities of the DDR? What role have the reintegrated terrorists played in tracking and arresting their kingpins? Can anyone honestly say terrorism is reducing in Nigeria, even with the ‘graduation’ and reintegration of 3,000 terrorists into the society? Has the government addressed factors that encourage the youths to join terrorist groups, factors including poverty, endemic illiteracy, religious manipulation through certain preaching, and high unemployment levels?

Besides, what does the government mean by low-risk terrorists? It is a way of making people see the crime they commit as not so serious. It is deceitful and sad.  All over the world, terrorists are known as killers and destroyers, harbingers of tragedy, and that is what they do everywhere, including Nigeria. Branding some terrorists as low-risk is a fraudulent way of negating the nation’s anti-terrorism law. The military should be careful in its handling of terrorism now, so as not to occasion regret in future.
 
The fight against terrorism has been politicised, and it has become an industry in which huge sums of money are being spent with very minimal results. Are some feeding fat on the budget for the crusade?
 
The government also has a responsibility to ensure that the wronged get justice. If the government does not allow the law to take its course, one of the consequences may be an increase in resort to self-help in the country. Some people may not accept a situation where those who killed their loved ones would be allowed to walk freely on the streets on the promise that they have chosen not to kill again. Terrorists should get punished for the offence they commit.