President Goodluck Jonathan today in Damaturu, Yobe State, said there would be no amnesty for Boko Haram.
Jonathan insisted that in so far they have decided to remain faceless, the Federal Government would not extend such gesture to the sect that has vowed to islamize Nigeria.
According to jonathan who is on a visit to Yobe and Borno State, maintained that ” … for the Boko Haram, you don’t see anybody who says he is a Boko Haram. And you cannot declare amnesty to that way. For you to declare amnesty, you must be communicating with the people. You cannot declare amnesty for people that are operating under a den. So let them come.”
The Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Mohammadu Saa’d Abubakar said while consultation should continue among muslims about how to encourage peace, he had called on the Federal Government to grant amnesty to the jihadists, which he sees as a form of peace deal.
Speculations are rife that the call was a trick one made by the Sultan to entrap Jonathan considering the fact that his kinemen in the Niger Delta were offered such.
But the President said “I’m from the Niger Delta and I know the amnesty issue of the Niger Delta before it was declared by the late President when I was the Vice President. Some of these names you hear: Asari Dokubo , Tom Ateke, I did not see them when I was the Deputy Governor. It was in a meeting with the President then, that was the first time I saw them. What I’m saying is that in the Nigedr Delta, when you call them they will come and they will tell you their grievance whether rightly or wrongly”
“The issue of amnesty because it was even in the media that the President is going to Yobe and Borno to declare amnesty. I always say that you cannot declare amnesty for ghosts because these people are still operating as ghosts. You don’t see the person. . They will be there to tell you this is what we want and that is why we are doing this. But for the Boko Haram, you don’t see anybody who says he is a Boko Haram. And you cannot declare amnesty to that way. For you to declare amnesty, you must be communicating with the people. You cannot declare amnesty for people that are operating under a den. So let them come. Let them state how we can discuss it if amnesty will solve the problem. No problem about that. We can define amnesty. And I say so because even the Niger Delta, amnesty was managed poorly and a lot of challenges.” he said
He said further “If I’m not from the Niger Delta, by now it would have gotten even disastrous because of the way it was poorly managed. The President then gave a date that on this date everybody who surrender his weapon and be forgiven because carrying weapons is an offence in the country. So when you surrender your weapon that this is it, you will be forgiven. In addition to forgiving you for illegal possession of arms and ammunition, we will do everything for you to get you out of these criminal activities you are doing. And what happened? As at that date some people surrendered. Ordinarily people who did not surrender their weapon that day were supposed to be declared as criminals and the law enforcement agencies were supposed to arrest anybody who did not bring the weapons.”