Experts Warn FG On Declaring Amnesty For Boko Haram

A lawyer, Mr Afam Ani, publisher of the Nigerian Democrats Newspaper, Dr. Gboyega Aribisogun and a public affairs commentator, Mr Sam Emesele today looked at the call for the federal government to declare amnesty for the militant Islamist Boko Haram group.

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The trio were speaking as guests on Channels Television’s weekend flagship programme, Sunrise Saturday.
Mr Ani, who gave a legal perspective on the issue, said despite amnesty meaning a general pardon given to a number of persons or person, it will be “foolhardy” for Boko Haram to enjoy such privilege.
He said the objective of the group totally negates the statutes of the constitution of the federal Republic of Nigeria.
He made a comparison of the claim of the militants in Niger Delta region and that of the sect and concluded that former have a genuine case.
Dr. Aribisogun, on his part said members of the group must first be identified before any move to grant amnesty be discussed. He also shared the view of the federal government that “we cannot be dealing with ghosts”.
He continued saying “those who have been masterminding this violence have not come out to say this is why we are doing this”.
He said the sect has spent the last three years waging war against the government of Nigeria therefore the government cannot say “No responsible government will sit down and say yes, even though we do not know you, we will sit down and be talking to empty chairs”.
However, Mr Emesele said there should be a line of communication between the federal government and the sect despite their faceless nature “in order to move forward”.