Dr Kunle Olajide is the Secretary of the Yoruba Council of Elders (YCE). He speaks with KUNLE ODEREMI on the security situation in the country and other issues of importance.

INTERVIEW
By KUNLE ODEREMI
On Mar 1, 2020

WHAT do you consider as germane issues in the polity these days?

Number one is insecurity and that is very frightening. But in the last few weeks in the South-Western part of this country, we have relative peace from kidnappers, armed robbers and so on. Secondly, I am worried about the handling of insurgency in the North-East and the plan to set up a commission for ‘repentant’ Boko Haram fighters which is completely absurd and unacceptable.

Why?

Firstly, the war is still raging; they kill and maim on a daily basis. You don’t consider amnesty anywhere in the world until the war is over and you have established conquest. In other words, one party surrendered to the other. That is when you consider amnesty or an international organisation, a non-partisan welfare, comes to broker peace. Then, you think of amnesty on both sides.

But almost on a daily basis, we have been threatened by Shekau or whatever they call him and he threatened to capture our president; he cannot.

And in any case, you talk of de-radicalisation; it cannot happen in three, six months or one year. Unemployed youths who are aggrieved and who have taken part in the plunder and massacring innocent babies, mothers and men; they now pretend to surrender and you take them to camp and said you have de-radicalise them. You want to radicalise them straight into the society. Human rights doesn’t work like that.

First and foremost, they are going to or they should have their informant on the Boko Haram men. Secondly, even if their leaders should pretend to have surrendered, you get them into the camp and after a few months, you now want to rehabilitate them. I think the proposed bill went further to say they would give them money to go and start businesses. So, what you are saying in effect is that those unemployed youths should join Boko Haram and after a few months, they would have killed many people and they would come back and say they have repented.

You don’t fund insurgency yourself and the Federal Government should have it in mind that it is federal money that is being used to fight this insurgency and to fund the rehabilitation camps. That is the money that belongs to all parts of this country. And Boko Haram is a direct product of mis-governance in the Northern states. I have said it often times.

How?

It is a clash between feudalism which is preponderant in the Northern states, right from pre-colonial days and globalisation now which is indicated by technology. In other words, those who believe that they were born poor and they want to die poor now have the access to technology and GSM communication and all that.
Continue...

https://tribuneonlineng.com/nigerian-govt-is-rewarding-criminality-olajide/

America and Taliban just sign a deal... Everyone is now an expert in security. If not is confidential I will tell people why government is up-to on this repentance BH issues. anyways the only people who cares about irrelevant people opinion are irrelevant people.

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tsephanyah:
America and Taliban just sign a deal... Everyone is now an expert in security.

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