The Governor of Borno State Kashim Shettima said the government resolved to accept the repented and deradicalised members of the Boko Haram insurgents, as part of peace building process in the crisis hit areas.
Shettima disclosed this during his speech at the closing ceremony of the two-day Lake Chad Basin Governors’ Forum for Regional Cooperation on Stabilisation, Peace-building and Sustainable Development in Maiduguri on Wednesday.
He noted that it was impossible to fight darkness with darkness, hence the decision to re-absolve the repented insurgents into the society.
"Governments of the region have the largeness of heart to embrace and to reintegrate into the society, the deradicalised members of Boko Haram", he said.
The governor observed that military option alone could not solve the challenges of the Lake Chad Basin, calling for a more multi-dimensional approach.
"We want the military, political, social and economical approaches in solving the challenges of the Lake Chad Basin," he stressed.
Shettima said the governors of the Lake Chad Basin had reached a consensus to do a comprehensive compilation of the problems facing the basin with the intention to finding solutions to them.
In the communique released after the two-day meeting, it was agreed among the Lake Chad Basin governors to use a community-based approach in ensuring sustainability and ownership of solutions to the Boko Haram crisis in the Lake Chad Basin.
Besides, it was also agreed that Lake Chad Basin Governors’ Forum will be used to enhance joint efforts towards stabilizing, building peace and fostering sustainable development in the basin.
Governors from Niger, Chad, Cameroon and Nigeria attended the two-day meeting.
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