Repentant Boko Haram insurgents swore by Quran, can’t return to killings – Borno Govt

The Borno State government announced on Wednesday that the 160,000 repentant Boko Haram fighters cannot return to killing because they swore an oath to the Quran.

Zuwaira Gambo, the state’s Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, whose ministry is in charge of the affairs of ex-combatants and rescued prisoners, stated that 70,000 of the 160,000 repentant militants have been resettled and reintegrated into their villages.

Gambo insisted that having vowed by the Quran, the ex-terrorists would never return to the woods to rejoin Boko Haram.

She spoke during the Allamin Foundation’s public presentation of Boko Haram survivors, victims, and deradicalized women, which was supported by UKAID and held in Maiduguri.

The commissioner allayed public concerns that the rise of violence in the North-East was being caused by repentant terrorists abandoning their repentance and returning to the bush to take up arms against the Nigerian government.

She said,

“It is completely untrue that the repentant Boko Haram fighters are reneging on their repentance and returning to the bush to continue fighting.

“Out of the over 160,000 who repented, we have already reintegrated over 70,000 in their home communities, and I can assure you that no one will be missing should we decide to gather all of them for anyone to confirm. We operate a transparent process of their repentance.”

The commissioner said she was sure the repentant insurgent would not return to the trenches, having taken an oath with the Quran.

“We subject each of them to proper oath taking with the Holy Quran that he or she will never return to the bush to fight; and he or she swears with the Holy Quran in the presence of a committee comprising traditional rulers, religious leaders and government officials.

“No repentant Boko Haram dare renege on the oath because he or she knows what it means to swear with the Holy Quran and renege; and he or she knows that he or she dare not return to the bush because he or she knows that death awaits him on arrival; their commanders in the bush will kill him because they would not trust him.”

Gambo said about 75 per cent of the repentant insurgents were originally farmers, who were captured and forced into insurgency.

“They were not real fighters,” she said.

She, however, said the state government would study the entire charters of demand and do everything it could about them.

The charter comprises the demands of the survivors and victims from the government, security agencies, NGOs, the media, traditional and religious leaders, community members and other stakeholders for proper rehabilitation to a prosperous life.