Mohammed Adamu, the
inspector-general of police, says Katsina state’s amnesty programme for bandits
is not new because “such negotiations will bring peace”.
He said the federal government
also granted amnesty to Niger Delta militants in the past.
The IGP further said the security
situation in the country has improved compared to the two quarters ago,
maintaining that banditry and kidnapping have reduced.
He was briefing state house
correspondents after a meeting between President Muhammadu Buhari and security
chiefs at the presidential villa on Thursday.
Katsina governor, Aminu Masari,
was recently pictured meeting with the leader of bandits in his state and has
been greeted with criticism.
But Adamu said: “When we are
talking about peace initiative, there are a lot of things that we take into
consideration: you give out something to get something. And this peace
initiative did not start with the bandits in the north-western part of this
country.
“If you remember, some years back
we were having issues in the Niger Delta and those issues kinetic actions could
not solve the problem until amnesty and peace initiative came up and what we
had had in Niger Delta had gone.
“So, I think part of strategy to
deal with challenges in terms of either security or war, there is peaceful
negotiation too. So it is not that you are a bandit and on the course of the
banditry you committed crime you must be punished when there is peace
initiative going on. If you refused to accept the peace initiative of course
you have to face the consequences.”
Asked if he was comparing the
Niger Delta militant agitation to the killings by bandits in the north-west, he
replied: “It is not like comparison per se but giving an example how a
negotiation and dialogue can bring peace.
“Even in terms of war, you go
into dialogue so as to achieve certain level of peace. That is what I am trying
to say. So if dialogue can bring peace, why do you have to use force? That is
what I am just trying to say.”
Adamu said that reduction in
crime rate is noticeable in Zamfara, Katsina and Kaduna states.
“For instance, in June, 2019, a
total of 111 murder cases were reported nationally, while it reduced to 99 in
July and 80 in August,” he said.
“One hundred and eighty-three
armed robbery incidents were reported in June, with the rate dropping to 127 in
July and 96 in August 2019.
“A similar decline was noticed in
the rate of kidnapping with 134 incidents recorded in June, which declined to
112 in July and further declined to 83 in August.”
Click to signup for FREE news updates, latest information and hottest gists everyday
Advertise on NigerianEye.com to reach thousands of our daily users
That it was done with Niger-delta militants does not mean it should be done again.. Appeasing criminals should not always be the solution, they should be made to face the full wrath of the law. I fear very soon now, our government will offer amnesty to Boko haram
ReplyDeleteniger delta militants where not a religious group trying to impose their believe by force,they where fighting for resources control from there area,they where not jihadist and forcing others to turn to there religion
ReplyDelete