Let us recall that the movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) became the most visible, and unarguably the most quotable of the platforms involved in the agitation for equity in the Niger Delta. Other groups and syndicates also flourish in the region, many of them adopting methods that have been commonly condemned.

Between 2006 - 2008 more than 200 foreigners were kidnapped in the region. The attack by militants on Chevron Corporation and Royal Dutch Shell in 2006 interdicted up to 115,000 barrels of Crude Oil a day. Foreign Oil Companies reduced their operations on shore in the Delta and froze new projects on account of the unrest. In effect militancy reduced Nigerian’s monthly oil revenue to 1 billion dollars compared to monthly returns of 2.2 billion dollars in 2008.

In 2006 Shell shut down almost its entire western operations. Shell’s production nationwide declined from 1 million barrels a day to 380,000.00 boards a day. The haemorrhage was phenomenal.

But the truth is that, the impact of all this unrest has been felt by all Nigerians. The Federal Government in seeking to restore law and order – deployed the Joint Task Force (JTF). There were casualties all sides, and infrastructural development, particularly in the Niger Delta has been significantly retarded.

The use of force did not work and the negative conditions were reversed only after Yar'Adua's amnesty program was instituted. Today, more money is budgeted to support the said program than set aside for the entire health care sector.

Today, the Boko Haram terrorists, like MEND have become a major menace to the country and their negative impact on the nation's economy, is huge. It has become obvious that the government and JTF do not have the ability to defeat BH, just as they could not handle MEND.

In the best interest of our dear country and to save innocent lives, the time has come for a comprehensive amnesty program. This administration does not need to wait until BH violence spreads to the South before taking decisive action. Even respected Bill Clinton recently said that poverty is fueling violence in Nigeria. It is time to help the victimized BH foot soldiers, the Almajiris. The Islamic bank has already pledged $98million to help educate these poor Nigerians and Northerners, who, like the common man in the ND, are ignored and marginalized by both the state governments and the federal government.

Let us all support the President in this effort. It is the right thing to do.

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TO KEEP NIGERIA ONE IS A TASK THAT MUST BE DONE

BH spokesman number 4: qaqa, SLS, Ciroma, now Ndu_chucks.

BH has nothing as the basis for its evil acts, and there will be no amnesty for faceless baboons.

After seeing that the forward soldiers are doing more harm to their own people than good their rear soldiers are topping it off with blackmail.

"BH violence spreads to South" my foot - there will be blooooood!!!

Today, the Boko Haram terrorists, like MEND have become a major menace to the country and their negative impact on the nation's economy, is huge. It has become obvious that the government and JTF do not have the ability to defeat BH, just as they could not handle MEND.

In the best interest of our dear country and to save innocent lives, the time has come for a comprehensive amnesty program. This administration does not need to wait until BH violence spreads to South before taking decisive action. Even respected Bill Clinton recently said that poverty is fueling violence in Nigeria. Its time to help the victimized BH foot soldiers, the Almajiris. The Islamic bank has already pledged $98million to help educate the poor Northerners, who, like the common man in the ND, are ignored and marginalized by both the state governments and the federal government.

I am more and more convinced that ndu_chucks and the rest of these northern elites aren't human beings. But instead demons that must be hunted mercilessly and killed.

koruji: BH spokesman number 4: qaqa, SLS, Ciroma, now Ndu_chucks.

BH has nothing as the basis for its evil acts, and there will be no amnesty for faceless baboons.

After seeing that the forward soldiers are doing more harm to their own people than good their rear soldiers are topping it off with blackmail.

"BH violence spreads to South" my foot - there will be blooooood!!!

The same was said about MEND.

We need to take our country back from terrorists by significantly reducing the availability of poor and uneducated people which they use as foot soldiers. This should be the first reasonable step, next we need to partner with our friends abroad to help us with intelligence tools to fight groups like Al Quaeda who are trying to turn our country to Afghanistan.

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TO KEEP NIGERIA ONE IS A TASK THAT MUST BE DONE

ekt_bear: I am more and more convinced that ndu_chucks and the rest of these northern elites aren't human beings. But instead demons that must be hunted mercilessly and killed.

Your bait, disguised as an incendiary remark, is hereby nullified. I know you, you cannot hurt a fly. Insha Allah, with or without your narrow mindedness, our country will become great once again.

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TO KEEP NIGERIA ONE IS A TASK THAT MUST BE DONE

ndu_chucks:

The same was said about MEND.

We need to take our country back from terrorists by significantly reducing the availability of poor and uneducated people which they use as foot soldiers. This should be the first reasonable step, next we need to partner with our friends abroad to help us with intelligence tools to fight groups like Al Quaeda who are trying to turn our country to Afghanistan.

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TO KEEP NIGERIA ONE IS A TASK THAT MUST BE DONE

LOL My brother Ndu-chucks , me ya sa ?

Amnesty is a thing that has changed Nigeria political landscape.

The killing of anyone could be justified simply by advocating for something

MEND killed 20 on independences day, Boko haram took it the the next level

both should be stopped but WE should never support boko haram, because Islam does not preach what they are doing.

Mend still have a more legit cause for their fight than Boko haram

alj harem:

LOL My brother Ndu-chucks , me ya sa ?

Amnesty is a thing that has changed Nigeria political landscape.

The killing of anyone could be justified simply by advocating for something

MEND killed 20 on independences day, Boko haram took it the the next level

both should be stopped but WE should never support boko haram, because Islam does not preach what they are doing.

Mend still have a more legit cause for their fight than Boko haram

I will never support terrorists in any form but I do support educating the Almajiris so that they become useless to those who want to exploit them.

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TO KEEP NIGERIA ONE IS A TASK THAT MUST BE DONE

^^^^^^

Yes correct, I knew that this amnesty would open a pandora box and it did

Yes I support you on that.

ekt_bear: [size=16pt]I am more and more convinced that ndu_chucks and the rest of these northern elites aren't human beings. But instead demons that must be hunted mercilessly and killed.[/size]

At OP and his thread

MEND arose out of legitimate grievances which, I must say that despite the so-called amnesty, are yet to be addressed till tomorrow. That MEND went from denying Nigeria the proceeds of blood oil, by blowing up pipelines and the like, to bombing innocent people does not de-legitimize the original ND struggle. The real problem was an irresponsible government that would allow things to degenerate into violence under which all kinds of criminals find a home.

BH's fight had/has no legitimate basis. The usual story was that the police killed their members and their leader. Suppose that was true and you decide to seek revenge by killing some police officers in return. How does that translate into a call to impose sharia on the entire populace and turning into a full-fledged terror group? Never mind that their so-called leader, who's death they like to use as an excuse, named his camp "Afghanistan" from the word go - admittedly while the FG was sleeping on its oars. In addition, before any of the so-called killings he was teaching people that the water cycle is incorrect, and the like - anybody with half-a-brain ought to realize that such a group will end up visiting violence on innocent people. Is the Nigerian government (if there really is one) supposed to give amnesty by agreeing that these things are indeed correct and a legitimate basis for planting bombs across the federation.

Perhaps BH they can get an amnesty under the following conditions:
1. Turn in your weapons/bombs - all of it.
2. There will be no compensation.
3. No more illegitimate camps and crazy teachings.
4. Northern children must attend school.

Let them negotiate the terms of their surrender on the above conditions, but leave out any thought of blackmailing the south or requesting for payments.

When SLS was dancing all over the place about Islamic Banking I did mention that this is going to be linked to BH somewhere down the line. I can see the basis for the next rounds of BH bombings emerging through this linkage already.

If Northern leaders want to fight BH they better do it with clean hands instead of linking it to more funds - that they will loot anyway.

Ndu_chuks: The same was said about MEND.
We need to take our country back from terrorists by significantly reducing the availability of poor and uneducated people which they use as foot soldiers. This should be the first reasonable step, next we need to partner with our friends abroad to help us with intelligence tools to fight groups like Al Quaeda who are trying to turn our country to Afghanistan.

koruji: BH spokesman number 4: qaqa, SLS, Ciroma, now Ndu_chucks.

BH has nothing as the basis for its evil acts, and there will be no amnesty for faceless baboons.

After seeing that the forward soldiers are doing more harm to their own people than good their rear soldiers are topping it off with blackmail.

"BH violence spreads to South" my foot - there will be blooooood!!!

Where were you when we witnessed much the same during MEND so-called war against marginalization, and for greater control over oil resources?

Tell me you are being sarcastic.

Kobojunkie: Where were you when we witnessed much the same during MEND so-called war against marginalization, and for greater control over oil resources?

_chucks,

I am dissapointed in your belief that amnesty or any kind of monetray incentive, however nicely packaged and labelled, is the proper approach for winning over boko.

MEND was a residual and an outcrop of the Delta Revolutionaries dating back to time of Adaka Boro. Much as I detest their style of resolving grievance, I still value them as a grassroot movement with a pseudo-political legitimacy. Boko Harama is also a residual outcrop of Mai Tatsine, except that MT was never a grassroot movement in an orthodox sense.

It was a bad precedence to settle MEND the way the Govt did. No Govt has ever won a war against a grassroot movement, in the situation where Govt uses fiscal policy to bribe grassroot movement, then such govt leaves itself vulnerable at the mercy of the movement. We will be punishing our military personnell by settling and bribing Boko and this might result in resentment within the officcer corps. We could very well end up with similar high level corruption in uniformed military as we did with uniformed police force. If that were to happen, security will degenerate to the Pakistani or Lebanon level and we will end up with home grown mercenaries that build and sponsor terror syndicates with the aim of earning windfalls from the Govt.

In the past 10yrs, Pakistan has seen a surge in number of surviving victims on waiting list for prosthetics fittings, they hop around on crutches in the interim. By bribing boko, are we trying to reform almajiris or inadvertently end up creating more?

ekt_bear: I am more and more convinced that [size=14pt]ndu_chucks and the rest of these northern elites aren't human beings. But instead demons that must be hunted mercilessly and killed[/size].

ndu_chucks is a top operative of what is known in Nigeria as "Boko Haram". He deserves nothing less.

The OP's article is alarming in its breadth of foolishness.
I pray that the core-Northern elite can dig into their vast mounds of blood money to finance the OP's amnesty.

koruji: Tell me you are being sarcastic.

No I am not.

@_Negro, solutions which work are seldom popular and usually appear to be unreasonable on their surfaces. The Boko Haram saga is the greatest threat we've faced as a nation and the threat must be stopped by all means. Our military is incapable of defeating BH alone. We must use a combination of Amnesty, military presence, and superior intelligence, to fight this threat.

If we can destabilize these groups by pumping millions of naira into their mist while training and educating their pool of foot soldiers, many lives will be saved and we'll all be better for it. Amnesty will be a game changer which when coupled with the other activities I've mentions, will help us move forward with the building of a great nation.

As I mentioned earlier, the Islamic bank has made $98 million available for Almajiri education and GEJ's administration has already pledged almost N1billion for Almajiri education. Imagine what these funds coupled with a comprehensive Amnesty program would do for the region and the country. As a matter of fact, a good Amnesty program will go a long way in endearing GEJ to the common man in the North (think 2015).

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TO KEEP NIGERIA ONE IS A TASK THAT MUST BE DONE

BH is irrelevant. They don't threaten Nigeria's oil production...who cares about them?

Under no circumstances should GEJ negotiate any amnesty with them.

They'll only use the money to buy more weapons anyway, so they are stronger for round #2...

Amnesty ke.

I really wonder about this GEJ fellow, if he has any brain at all.

Offer an amnesty, then they'll simply regroup, form another terrorist org and claim that the group they just left that is feeding fat on the amnesty is made up of "infidels", blahblahblah.

It is a big game to suck federal resources dry...

ekt_bear: BH is irrelevant. They don't threaten Nigeria's oil production...who cares about them?

Under no circumstances should GEJ negotiate any amnesty with them.

They'll only use the money to buy more weapons anyway, so they are stronger for round #2...

We must stop BH before the group is turned into partners with Al Quaeda and other terrorists groups. I know you and your likes are OK with the current level of violence because you are not directly affected and because most of it has occurred in the North so far, but believe me, when it gets out of hand you will pay as much as Northerners. Its time to let go of bigotry and fight all enemies common to Nigerians. There is a reason why the US government is also expressing concerns over the BH issues - stop playing dumb, we know better.

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TO KEEP NIGERIA ONE IS A TASK THAT MUST BE DONE

lol, I perceive a trace of sarcasm in your last response, for that I share in your sense of humor!

The North as a political fortress is subsisting on a cultural philosophy that indoctrinates discipline and fortitude at an early age educating on self-sufficiency and strength of will. It teaches that the human spirit has a stamina and endurance from which to conquer the adversities of physical and material world. Therefore, beginning as an acolyte under the tutelage of a learned scholar, the child is taught how to battle inner conflicts and physical vanities. Therefore, if a change is needed in the social structure, it should not be the almajiri scholarship because the principles itself has social values that should be cherished and preserved for manhood training.

I can fill a page listing the names of popular and wealthy Hausas and Fulanis who rose from almajiri status to become prominent and successful politicians and businessmen.

What needs changing is the authority that oversees this cultural training and not the framework of the teachings. The government and the Sultanate, as well as the Emirs owe obligation and responsibility to almajiris. Almajiri is not a Nigerian institution, it is a Northern Islamic institution, therefore the changes should be championed by the Sultan. Reformative changes at the top, in terms of objective and measurable goals, pumping money into a stagnant system that has no identified deliverables is a waste. However, if the various sponsors have committed to help and resolve the problem, then it's a welcome and great beginning. I will leave almajiri alone and speak to boko now.

On boko, totally different menace! Worse than anything you can imagine. I disagree that we never faced such a threat before. Yes we have. In the 70s, practically people in the big cities lived in an age of innocence. They left their homes unlocked to go to market, they left their children playing around in the nighborhood, they even slept outside in the open terrace on hot nights, they went to all night parties and returned home safely. Then armed robbery came to town and they lost their innocence! The psychic response and shock we go through now when a bomb goes off and we see pictures of dead and mangled body parts was no different to that of people who have never had to face the barrell of a gun all of a sudden had one resting on their temple while their daughter or wife is being raped.

Anyway,. . .boko and almajiri are two separate issues. Supporting and reforming almajiri does not translate to reformation and cessation of terror in boko. I do not support redemption or amnesty of any kind for boko. I suggest the Govt pump whatever money is earmarked for boko as an incentive for the military force sent to fight them. Differential pay and bonus for any military team or unit credited with verifiable success for wiping a boko cell or enclave. Boost morale for the military, not for boko.

I should remind you about Donald Rumsfeld error in Iraq. He sent thousands of US military on standardized pay to Iraq to clear the ground and kill the bad boys but contracted the security of US civilians and their convoys in Iraq to Blackwater. While military personnell on $17/hr taxable pay were out patrolling hazardous streets and getting roasted by insurgents, Blackwater contractors on $200/hr tax-free pay were sitting around in heavily secured Green Zone enjoying roasted kebab. We must not be like Rumsfeld!

Dudu_Negro: lol, I perceive a trace of sarcasm in your last response, for that I share in your sense of humor!

The North as a political fortress is subsisting on a cultural philosophy that indoctrinates discipline and fortitude at an early age educating on self-sufficiency and strength of will. It teaches that the human spirit has a stamina and endurance from which to conquer the adversities of physical and material world. Therefore, beginning as an acolyte under the tutelage of a learned scholar, the child is taught how to battle inner conflicts and physical vanities. Therefore, if a change is needed in the social structure, it should not be the almajiri scholarship because the principles itself has social values that should be cherished and preserved for manhood training.

I can fill a page listing the names of popular and wealthy Hausas and Fulanis who rose from almajiri status to become prominent and successful politicians and businessmen.

What needs changing is the authority that oversees this cultural training and not the framework of the teachings. The government and the Sultanate, as well as the Emirs owe obligation and responsibility to almajiris. Almajiri is not a Nigerian institution, it is a Northern Islamic institution, therefore the changes should be championed by the Sultan. Reformative changes at the top, in terms of objective and measurable goals, pumping money into a stagnant system that has no identified deliverables is a waste. However, if the various sponsors have committed to help and resolve the problem, then it's a welcome and great beginning. I will leave almajiri alone and speak to boko now.

On boko, totally different menace! Worse than anything you can imagine. I disagree that we never faced such a threat before. Yes we have. In the 70s, practically people in the big cities lived in an age of innocence. They left their homes unlocked to go to market, they left their children playing around in the nighborhood, they even slept outside in the open terrace on hot nights, they went to all night parties and returned home safely. Then armed robbery came to town and they lost their innocence! The psychic response and shock we go through now when a bomb goes off and we see pictures of dead and mangled body parts was no different to that of people who have never had to face the barrell of a gun all of a sudden had one resting on their temple while their daughter or wife is being raped.

Anyway,. . .boko and almajiri are two separate issues. Supporting and reforming almajiri does not translate to reformation and cessation of terror in boko. I do not support redemption or amnesty of any kind for boko. I suggest the Govt pump whatever money is earmarked for boko as an incentive for the military force sent to fight them. Differential pay and bonus for any military team or unit credited with verifiable success for wiping a boko cell or enclave. Boost morale for the military, not for boko.

I should remind you about Donald Rumsfeld error in Iraq. He sent thousands of US military on standardized pay to Iraq to clear the ground and kill the bad boys but contracted the security of US civilians and their convoys in Iraq to Blackwater. While military personnell on $17/hr taxable pay were out patrolling hazardous streets and getting roasted by insurgents, Blackwater contractors on $200/hr tax-free pay were sitting around in heavily secured Green Zone enjoying roasted kebab. We must not be like Rumsfeld!

I will respond to your concerns in the next few hours. For now, I'll simply state that I have no interest whatsoever in Social Engineering which you seem to be calling for. My interest is in peace and prosperity for ALL Nigerians.

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TO KEEP NIGERIA ONE IS A TASK THAT MUST BE DONE

Ndu_chuck:
I will never support terrorists in any form but I do support educating the Almajiris so that they become useless to those who want to exploit them.

So what is stopping their education? Is it not in this same country that a certain governor gave-up his security vote, salary, etc to fund free education in his state? Perhaps, instead of waiting from more hand-out from oil producing zones/FG, the northern governors should troop down to Imo State on how to implement free education with whatever resources they have.

We were told there are about 10 million Almajiri in the North, if the Northern leaders can pull some 3 million out of the street, that would be a good start. One more thing, it is never too late to get education. A 30 year old almajiri can still be enrolled for basic education in the so-called night school system. Start where you are with what you have!

The North cannot hold Nigeria down with threat of violence, at this rate, one day, we will walk out of the union and nothing will happen!

PointB:

So what is stopping their education? Is it not in this same country that a certain governor gave-up his security vote, salary, etc to fund free education in his state? Perhaps, instead of waiting from more hand-out from oil producing zones/FG, the northern governors should troop down to Imo State on how to implement free education with whatever resources they have.

We were told there are about 10 million Almajiri in the North, if the Northern leaders can pull some 3 million out of the street, that would be a good start. One more thing, it is never too late to get education. A 30 year old almajiri can still be enrolled for basic education in the so-called night school system. Start where you are with what you have!

The North cannot hold Nigeria down with threat of violence, at this rate, one day, we will walk out of the union and nothing will happen!

The continued marginalization of the youths of the ND who are now, thankfully, being trained, educated, and sent abroad for more training, and similar marginalization of the Almajiris, remains a complete disgrace to all Nigerians. The governors, the federal government, state governments, and people like you have failed these kids.

We should appreciate the $98million contribution of the new Islamic bank and the pledge by GEJ to spend upwards of N1billion to refurbish the schools and educate these Almajiris. A comprehensive amnesty program which will focus on helping these kids, is in order. Let go of your hatred for the North and your self hatred and do the right thing. Support the marginalized kids; they too are Allah's (God) children.

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TO KEEP NIGERIA ONE IS A TASK THAT MUST BE DONE

Very soon every state, LGA, ward, and family will have Boko Haram-type cell. For over 50 years oil producing communities were treated like stateless fools and for that we support the current effort by the Govt to right the wrongs of decades of deprivation. Basically, we owe oil producing communities lots and lots of gratitude, they've sustained this wayward nation for too long.

Now what do we owe Boko Haram? Why do I have to take money from Imo state and give to Boko Haram? At least If I give to MEND I get some back from oil fields in Bayelsa, what do I get back from Boko Haram? The Answer is nothing with a capital N. So, the proponents of amnesty and its attendant oil money to Boko Haram should know that if we ever decide to extend a hand to Boko Haram, its because of love not because they deserve it.

Sam_Ikenna: Very soon every state, LGA, ward, and family will have Boko Haram-type cell. For over 50 years oil producing communities were treated like stateless fools and for that we support the current effort by the Govt to right the wrongs of decades of deprivation. Basically, we owe oil producing communities lots and lots of gratitude, they've sustained this wayward nation for too long.

We owe oil producing communities but not MEND, right? Yet, only MEND members(terrorists got paid, and the payment was made to get them to disarm i.e stop the violence against the locals and the oil infrastructure). The oil producing communities are still suffering with near no relief, even after the installation of a new Ministry for them. It is all clear at this time, to the average N-Deltan living down in the region,that MEND only represented, and continues to represent, the selfish cause of those in this organization.

Sam_Ikenna:
Now what do we owe Boko Haram? Why do I have to take money from Imo state and give to Boko Haram? At least If I give to MEND I get some back from oil fields in Bayelsa, what do I get back from Boko Haram? The Answer is nothing with a capital N. So, the proponents of amnesty and its attendant oil money to Boko Haram should know that if we ever decide to extend a hand to Boko Haram, its because of love not because they deserve it.

What do we owe another one of the many selfish organizations with a claimed cause? We already paid one group off, why then not pay the other? Or did we all not see this coming?

Sam_Ikenna: Very soon every state, LGA, ward, and family will have Boko Haram-type cell. For over 50 years oil producing communities were treated like stateless fools and for that we support the current effort by the Govt to right the wrongs of decades of deprivation. Basically, we owe oil producing communities lots and lots of gratitude, they've sustained this wayward nation for too long.

Now what do we owe Boko Haram? Why do I have to take money from Imo state and give to Boko Haram? At least If I give to MEND I get some back from oil fields in Bayelsa, what do I get back from Boko Haram? The Answer is nothing with a capital N. So, the proponents of amnesty and its attendant oil money to Boko Haram should know that if we ever decide to extend a hand to Boko Haram, its because of love not because they deserve it.

You've completely missed the point. There are 30million Nigerian youths wasting away without adequate education. These kids are being exploited by politicians and terrorists alike. The federal government has budgeted several trillion Naira over the past decades for Education, but as usual, most of that money, was carted away instead of being used to support education. You, the elite of Nigeria should be ashamed of yourselves and the demise of these children is a national disgrace!! Rightfully or wrongfully, BH is using the marginalization of the masses in the North as an excuse to attack police stations, army posts, UN buildings, and other innocent Nigerians. The problem of BH, you must admit has become a major concern to all of us. We need a comprehensive amnesty program which will take the incentive to become terrorists away and significantly reduce their pool of foot soldiers. That step along with reasonable force and intelligence efforts will solve the problem.

This is not about what you owe a region, but what you owe fellow human beings - innocent and exploited children. I'm glad the President is planning to address this issue, kudos to him for that.

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TO KEEP NIGERIA ONE IS A TASK THAT MUST BE DONE

ndu, to be honest I like how you advocate for your people, especially the disadvantaged, I wish you were one of those core northerners in power in those good old days of core north. Anyway, I do not support all your advocay but at least I like how passionate you are on several issues that deal with the disadvantaged core northerners. The only draw-back is that now Nigeria is bigger and wiser therefore, you will have to fight every Tom and Harry to get a penny for your people. We all want some pie from the center and since the center pie is not enough I suggest we all start being creative with whatever we have.

Core Northern problems do not generate much sympathy, I'm sorry to say that, and you know why. Even the East and West do not have much sympathy for eachother let alone core North. You will agree the reason MEND was treated with some respect is because their communities produce most of the resource we waste and finally, their cause was a just one. If we were not getting anything from oil communities we would've let them drown in their problems irrespective of how just their cause was - thats Nigeria for you.

For some of us, its just because of love of God and humanity that will make us extend a hand to Boko Haram or any other core north issues because their region caused almost 99% of their ills. From Maitesine to Sharia to almajiri to Boko Haram, core north seems to be in no hurry to end any kind of missery for all eventhough most of the people that usurped our collective resource and power came from the same region - now you see why most people dont have sympathy for core north.

Core north must brace herself and fight for her soul, they must start swinging at Boko Haram with all their might - and while at it, they must also start fighting those that used much of their "power allocation" in the past.

Kobojunkie:

What do we owe another one of the many selfish organizations with a claimed cause? We already paid one group off, why then not pay the other? Or did we all not see this coming?

Do you realize how many terrorist cells we will end up with when the chips are down?

Sam_Ikenna:

Do you realize how many terrorist cells we will end up with when the chips are down?

Isn't it a bit late in the game to start considering that? We started this when we arranged payment for the other terrorist group. IT is rather meaningless crying foul when other terrorist groups decide they also want to get paid.

ndu_chucks:

You've completely missed the point. There are 30million Nigerian youths wasting away without adequate education. These kids are being exploited by politicians and terrorists alike. The federal government has budgeted several trillion Naira over the past decades for Education, but as usual, most of that money, was carted away instead of being used to support education. You, the elite of Nigeria should be ashamed of yourselves and the demise of these children is a national disgrace!! Rightfully or wrongfully, BH is using the marginalization of the masses in the North as an excuse to attack police stations, army posts, UN buildings, and other innocent Nigerians. The problem of BH, you must admit has become a major concern to all of us. We need a comprehensive amnesty program which will take the incentive to become terrorists away and significantly reduce their pool of foot soldiers. That step along with reasonable force and intelligence efforts will solve the problem.

This is not about what you owe a region, but what you owe fellow human beings - innocent and exploited children. I'm glad the President is planning to address this issue, kudos to him for that.

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TO KEEP NIGERIA ONE IS A TASK THAT MUST BE DONE

Nwanne looks like you're fixing for a slugfest. I'm not "the elite" maybe you are, however, thats beside the point. I hope you know there are many ways to solve Boko Haram, one of which is - we can all walk away and leave the core north to solve it on their own. The reason I'm interested in extending hand to Boko Haram is purely from Christian point - not politics so, quit the "Elite" label 'cause it wont fly.

If I toll the line of politics my solution will be different.