By John Ikani
The United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has promised to support the reintegration process for repentant Boko Haram terrorists into the society.
The Secretary-General made the promise when he paid a courtesy to Borno St pkate Governor Babagana Zulum at the Government House, Maiduguri.
Guterres told a news conference that the integration programme would help achieve peace.
“The governor has told me that you need to create new facilities to be able to have effective reintegration of these ex-terrorists, ex-combatants, and I promised that we would be fully supportive of that project,” Guterres said.
“The best thing we can do for peace is to reintegrate those who in the moment of despair became terrorists but now want to become citizens and to contribute to the well-being of their brothers and sisters.”
The war against Boko Haram insurgency had in the last one year assumed a different dimension with the mass surrendering of fighters and members of their family.
So far, more than fifty thousand combatants and non-combatants have surrendered to authorities in Borno state and are currently undergoing rehabilitation.
Guterres urged continued humanitarian support in Borno State and appealed to the Government to help the people in Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps to return to their homes “in safety and dignity.”
