No fewer than 594 rehabilitated Boko Haram members have graduated from the Federal Government’s Operation Safe Corridor de‑radicalisation, rehabilitation and reintegration camp in Malam Sidi, Kwami Local Government Area of Gombe State. At the graduation ceremony, camp commandant Colonel Uche Nnabuihe detailed the origins of the graduates: fifteen are from Adamawa, 495 from Borno, 16 each from Yobe and Kano, three from Gombe, 13 from Kaduna, one from Kogi, 12 from Bauchi, five each from Jigawa and Katsina, four from Kebbi, and one each from Nasarawa, Plateau, and two from Zamfara. Of the 594 graduates, 590 are Nigerians and four are foreigners—three Nigeriens and one Chadian. Religiously, 588 are Muslims and six are Christians.
Nnabuihe explained that upon arrival the clients underwent comprehensive medical examinations conducted by a team from the camp clinic and the Federal Teaching Hospital Gombe, and their data were captured by the National Identity Management Commission. He noted that the ceremony marked a milestone for “regular Batch Six 2002 and Special Batch 4 2002” participants who arrived between September 2022 and 8 October 2022 for the mandatory programme. The health assessments were intended to ensure appropriate care throughout the de‑radicalisation training cycle.
The graduates also received vocational training to promote self‑reliance after reintegration with their communities. Eighty‑five were trained as barbers, 81 in shoemaking, 158 in welding, 213 in tailoring, 38 in carpentry, and 28 in laundry services. All participants took part in integrated farming activities, including agro‑, poultry‑, and fish‑farming.
Coordinator of Operation Safe Corridor, Major General Joseph Maina, highlighted the ongoing impact of the Boko Haram insurgency in the North‑East, which has displaced over two million people internally and forced many others to seek refuge in neighboring countries. He stressed that purely military solutions are insufficient and that, since 2015, the Federal Government has adopted Operation Safe Corridor as a non‑kinetic, multi‑agency approach to complement military actions.
During the ceremony, repentant former member Muhammad Abba publicly apologized for the atrocities committed by Boko Haram. He said, “We apologise for our wrongs to our communities and to everyone here. We are truly sorry and will not return to those atrocities. We have taken an oath of allegiance to our peaceful, loving country, Nigeria. We understand the consequences of breaking an oath sworn on the Quran or the Holy Bible. If we betray it, Allah will not be pleased and will punish us, even if we escape Nigeria’s security—we cannot escape Allah. We will remain faithful and loyal to the oath we have taken.”
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