Some stakeholders in Maiduguri Metropolitan Council have urged for Borno State Government support to the community based NGO, Allamin Foundation for Peace and Development, to enable it to expand its deradicalisation programme for repentant Boko Haram women to also cover their male counterpart.
The stakeholders including some deradicalised women made the call on Monday at a one-day community dialogue on understanding, tolerance and peaceful co-existence, organized by the foundation for stakeholders in Maiduguri Metropolitan Council.
The stakeholders observed that the foundation, which had succeeded in the deradicalisation of about 90 women and girls that are now playing vital role in peacebuilding, deserves the support of government, organisations and philanthropists to expand its interventions to cover repentant male insurgents.
Some of the repentant women deradicalised by the foundation, who spoke at the dialogue on the way out for lasting peace in Borno, said they were misled based on their shallow knowledge of Islam and now succumbed to the truth after superior evidence shown to them from the Holy Quran and Hadith presented to them at the foundation by Islamic clerics in series of meetings.
“They Ulamas were able to convince us and change our thinking. We now realize Islam is about peace. We are doing our best in reaching out to others and will want the foundation to also help in reaching out to our men too instead of just concentrating on women.
“We want Borno Government to also step in by engaging the foundation in reaching out to our husbands and male children in its deradicalisation programme for the needed maximum result in the ongoing deradicalisation and reconciliation process in the state,” one of the deradicalised women who simply identified herself as Hauwa said.
Hauwa urged the public to continue to show understanding and forgiveness, and to embrace them as tolerance is key in the healing process.
Another who identified herself as Hussaina, said that some of them were young when they were misled to join the insurgency and need to be forgiven now that they have been saved from the false narrative and indoctrination.
She lauded Governor Babagana Zulum of Borno for opening the window for them to repent, and the foundation for its intervention in guiding them to the truth which has stopped many of them from going back to the bush.
Hussaina also urged for expansion of the deradicalisation to reach out to the men by the foundation, which could only be facilitated with the active collaboration of the state government and other partners.
In his contribution at the dialogue, Sheikh Ali Ibrahim Mustapha, who is a consultant on peace and mediation that has been active in the deradicalisation of the women and girls by the foundation, also spoke on more support to expand the reach out by the foundation which capacity for now was limited.
In her remarks, the Executive Director of the foundation, Hajiya Hamsatu Allamin, who said the dialogue was convened for the repentants and community members to further dialogue and speak on challenges be faced in the reintegration process, said the foundation inability to expand its deradicalisation programme to surrendered males was because funding provided was specifically for women and girls considered as victims.
Hamsatu said that she had spoken to some Borno government officials on the need for collaboration and support so that the foundation would also complement the state government effort in deradicalisation of repentant male insurgents.
