FG: Repentant Terrorists with Serious Crimes Will Face Prosecution

The Federal Government has unveiled new Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for its Disarmament, Demobilisation, and Reintegration (DDR) programme targeting repentant terrorists, while making it clear that those accused of serious offences will not escape justice.  

 The guidelines were launched on Monday during a national validation workshop in Abuja.

They are designed to improve transparency, accountability, and inter-agency coordination. State-level SOPs for Kaduna, Katsina, and Zamfara were also approved.

National Coordinator of the National Counter Terrorism Centre (NCTC), Adamu Laka, said the SOPs resulted from extensive consultations and align with Nigeria’s security realities and international standards.

Laka noted that military action alone cannot guarantee lasting peace, positioning the DDR programme as a vital non-kinetic tool against terrorism, banditry, and violent extremism.

Director of Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism at the NCTC, Abimbola Wońosikou, stressed that the programme would not protect criminals, stating:

“Those accused of serious crimes would still face prosecution through the appropriate legal processes.”

The United Nations commended Nigeria’s community-focused approach to reintegration.

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