The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Maj.-Gen. Taoreed Abiodun Lagbaja, has said, terrorists regrouped after amnesty program despite the effort of the military, and the Federal in Zamfara State, making it inadequate.
Army Chief said this on Wednesday when Zamfara State governor paid him a courtesy visit to solicite for support to fight criminality in the state.
He said bandit regrouped after being granted amnesty, “The issue of the armnesty program needs to be looked into as it has given some criminal elements the leverage to regroup and launch attacks on innocent citizens in communities some communities.
General Lagbaja said the Armed Forces of Nigeria has risen to the security challenges with Operation HADARIN DAJI to tackle major crisis like farmer and herders crisis, ethnic confrontations, and the quest for economic empowerment driven by mining activities..
He noted that he has directed the Chief of operations to take some measures which will yield the desired results quickly and we are still receiving reports from the field to see other areas of intervention that can bring a lasting peace to the troubled local government and even the entire Zamfara State.
“We also have the issue of the amnesty programme that has been instituted, and which has failed not only in Zamfara but so many other states of the North West.
“So, I think we need to look at this issue of the amnesty programme for the criminal elements have proven to be incorrigible”, he said.