Insecurity: Ex-Lawmakers Condemn Negotiation With Terrorists

A group of former federal lawmakers under the aegis of House to the Rescue has condemned what it described as a negotiation with terrorists technique under President Bola Tinubu’s administration.

The group, in a statement jointly signed by its zonal coordinators: Hon. Muhammed Musa Soba – North West, Hon. Zakari Mohammed – North Central, Hon. Olasupo Abiodun – South West, Hon. Sadiq Ibrahim – North East, Hon. Uko Nkole-South East, Hon. Bassey Eko Ewa-South South, said the approach is igniting insecurity across Nigeria.

“House to the Rescue unequivocally condemns the Federal Government’s ongoing negotiations with bandits and criminal networks responsible for the wave of kidnappings tearing through Nigeria.

“At a time when citizens are crying out for protection, the government has chosen to sit at the same table with those who abduct children, violate women, terrorise communities, and undermine the authority of the Nigerian state.

This is not leadership.

“This is an abdication of responsibility. For weeks, Nigerians have endured new rounds of kidnappings in Kano, Kwara, Kebbi and other states. Families are traumatised, communities are helpless, yet the Federal Government’s response has been silence, excuses, and back-door concessions to violent groups.

No functioning nation rewards criminality with dialogue,” they said.

According to the group, negotiation with the bandits has never worked anywhere, as history showed that countries which tried the path paid dearly for it, such as in Colombia, Mexico, Afghanistan and Somalia.

“The global evidence is indisputable: negotiating with violent non-state actors leads to more violence, not peace. Nigeria is not an exception.

Nigeria will not be the first country where bandit negotiations succeed.

“The federal government is legitimising criminality and endangering the entire nation by entering talks with bandits. The federal government is signalling weakness, incentivising more kidnappings, giving criminals political relevance, undermining security agencies and destroying public trust in the state.

“This reckless approach has already created a dangerous business model where abductors take citizens and wait for government representatives to arrive with negotiations instead of force,” they added.

The House to the Rescue demanded immediate action to stop all negotiations and covert dealings with bandits, launching a coordinated, intelligence-driven national security operation to rescue victims and dismantle kidnapping networks.