Published 7th Feb, 2022

By Tola Owoyele

Nigerians on social media have criticised the Nigerian Army for welcoming members of the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) and their families said to have surrendered to the 25 Task Force Brigade of the Nigerian Army in Damboa, Borno State, on Saturday.

According to a Facebook post by the army on Monday, 104 people, comprising 22 males, 27 females and 55 children, surrendered to troops.

Reacting to the development, some Nigerians complained about the government’s plan to reintegrate repentant insurgents into society.

“Are they Nigerians? Stop this integration nonsense! Terrorists don’t change! Deal with them ruthlessly!” Adeniyi Sofuye wrote on Facebook.

“Carefully planned infiltration. People hardly renounce their religious ideologies,” said Titus Asuk-Enim, another Facebook user.

“So, my question is this: when they choose to surrender, do they escape from their camps unnoticed? Or do their commanders just allow them to go and surrender, and without the fear that they would later expose their hideouts?” Igwe Kenneth Chukwudi asked.

“Rubbish! You people should keep on nurturing cyclists, recycling them, thinking we’re so ignorant about what is going on. Nigeria is too big for such an idea,” said Bernard Uwandu.

“Tag or call them repentant, repented or maybe born again ISWAP members and kindly integrate them into the military or police. Mad people everywhere!’ Said Abi King Uchendu.

In August 2021, over 1,600 insurgents surrendered to the army on two separate occasions.

FIJ had reported that the series of surrenders by terrorists in recent times were likely because of disasters like famine, hunger and diseases befalling them in their hideouts.

Last year, Borno residents kicked against the reintegration of terrorists into their community, citing fears that their repentance might not be genuine, and that it could be a ploy to further attack innocent lives.

There have also been examples of resentment by residents toward the newly born insurgents because of the heinous and atrocious activities they have carried out in the past.

In March 2021, Babagana Zulum, Borno State Governor, said the deradicalisation of repentant insurgents needed reviews as some of them had only come to spy on communities and then return to join the group.

“It has been confirmed that the concept of deradicalisation is not working as expected. Quite often, those who have passed through the initiative, or have been deradicalised, usually go back and rejoin the terror group, after carefully studying the various security arrangements in their host communities, during the reintegration process,” he said.

In November 2021, Babagana Mongono, the National Security Adviser, said over 15,000 insurgents had surrendered to troops from their enclaves, Sambisa Forest, as well as other hideouts, since Operation Safe Corridor, an initiative for the deradicalisation and rehabilitation of repentant insurgents, was launched in 2016.

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