Borno: 50 Boko Haram members promise to assist government end crises

In its continued effort to speak to members of the dreaded Boko Haram sect towards ending the Boko Haram insurgency in parts of the country, the Presidential committee on dialogue may have gained mileage as some detained members of the dreaded sect in Maiduguri, the Borno state capital have agreed to collaborate with the security forces to put an end to the continued bloodletting.
During a visit of the presidential committee on dialogue and peaceful resolution of security challenges in the North to a detention site in Maiduguri on Tuesday, over 50 detained members of the dreaded sect said if they are given a second chance, they will assist authorities to end the crisis.
One of the detainees, Adam Konto who introduced himself to the chairman of the committee. Kabir Taminu Turaki as the Amir (commander) of the Bayan quarter, said he was speaking on behalf of the other detained members of the sect at the site and that they will never pick up arms against the nation again.
Konto said: “We pledge to assist the authorities if given a second chance while admitting to our crimes.”
He said: “Most of us were brainwashed and recruited into the sect and given dastardly acts to do without our full understanding of what we were doing.”
Another detainee who identified himself as Babagana Saje while also expressing his readiness to denounce the sect said the police should be praised for keeping them alive.
He said: “The police have been treating us fine. We have been allowed to take our bath and have been well fed.”
Turaki however promised the detainees that their cases would be looked into, insisting that “if you are sincere with this information we have gathered, we will bring you into the proposed amnesty agenda