Army Declares War Against Bandits, Dismisses Amnesty for Terrorists

The Chief of Army Staff, Maj. Gen. Taoreed Lagbaja, has dismissed the idea of amnesty for terrorist saying that the programme instituted in most states failed to achieve its purpose.

Politics Nigeria earlier reported that there has been call from different quarters for the federal government to negotiate and grant amnesty to terrorists just like the Niger-Delta militants.

But Lagbaja explained that rather than repent, terrorists who benefit from such programmes see it as an avenue to regroup and attack innocent citizens.

Speaking when Zamfara State Governor, Dauda Lawal, paid him a courtesy visit in Abuja on Wednesday, Lagbaja assured Nigerians of a new strategy to address the issue.

“We have the issue of the amnesty programme that has been instituted, and which has failed, not only in the north but also in many other states,” Lagbaja said.

“I think we need to look at this issue of the amnesty programmes. The agreements have proven to be incorrigible and so amnesty has created an avenue for them to reorganise and launch attacks on defenseless citizens. So, I think we need to look at that.”

The army chief called on state governments to support the military in actualizing their goal.

Lagbaja maintained that the insecurity ravaging Zamfara was a mix of farmer-herder clashes, ethnic confrontations, and the quest for economic survival.

The army chief said he had directed the deployment of more platforms and the release of more funds to reactivate unserviceable platforms to boost troops’ operations in the state.