In compliance with President Goodluck Jonathan's directive on the immediate release of some members of the dreaded Boko Haram sect, the Joint Task Force (JTF) has handed over 20 pardoned sect members to Borno State governor, Kashim Shettima of Borno State, while 17 women and 21 children were handed over to Yobe State governor, Ibrahim Geidam yesterday.
The 20 suspects, comprising six women and 14 young men were handed over to the Governor Shettima by the Commander, 23 Armoured Brigade at the Government House while the 17 women and 21 children were handed over to Governor Gaidam at the Wawa Hall by the JTF spokesman in Yobe, Lt. Lazarus Eli for rehabilitation and re-integration withtheir families.
Shortly before the handover of the suspects to Shettima, the spokesman of the JTF in Borno, Lt. Col Sagir Musa, who accompanied the Brigade Commander said: "On behalf of the Chief of Defence Staff, Admiral Saad Ibrahim, we are handing over the six women and 14 children arrested by our men, so that they could be rehabilitated and reintegrated with their families and become useful member s of the society." Responding Governor Shettima said: "We most sincerely thank Mr. President for his magnanimity.
This marks a milestone in our quest for peace and to restore normalcy to Borno State and the country at large."
He commended the security operatives for keeping the detainees hale and hearty and promised that the state government will rehabilitate and reintegrate back to the society, so that they may become good members of the society, adding that that they will be trained in various vocational training centres to acquire skills, while the young men will be sent to schools. He pledged N10,000 for the parents of the children, if they agree to enrol them into schools.
The governor urged the suspects to be good citizens and not to retrace their steps into the Boko Haram sect, as no religion allows the killing of innocent citizen in the name of fighting the course of Allah.
In a confessional statement, one of the released teenagers said that he used to spy for the sect on the movement of the JTF and that he was being paid N5,000 after any successful operation.
Another teenager also confessed said that he was given petrol and matches to burn schools and that after every operations he was paid N5,000, adding that when he was arrested, he revealed his sponsors to the JTF and were promptly arrested. In the same vein, Governor Geidam has promised to train the released suspects to acquire skills so that they will become useful citizens in the future.
National Mirror