The Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) has denied claims circulating on social media suggesting that it endorsed amnesty or financial incentives for terrorists and bandits in Nigeria.
In a statement issued by Prof. T. A. Muhammad-Baba, National Publicity Secretary of the forum, he said the misinformation stemmed from a “truncated and mischievously abstracted” video clip from an interview granted by Alhaji Bashir Dalhatu, Chairman of the ACF Board of Trustees.
Muhammad-Baba explained that Dalhatu’s remarks were largely personal and taken out of context. “The circulating clip was edited to reach predetermined conclusions by some clandestine and shadowy groups,” he said.
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The statement clarified that Dalhatu “assertively condemned the spate of terrorist activities in Nigeria” and called for “the total annihilation of the terrorists and bandits within the shortest period possible.” Any reference to the Niger Delta amnesty was solely to highlight that government could, where appropriate, consider a combination of kinetic and non-kinetic measures, not as an endorsement of a similar programme.
“ACF hereby makes it categorically and unambiguously clear that at no time has the organisation called for any amnesty in favour of terrorists or bandits,” the forum emphasized.
The organisation reiterated its support for government and security agencies in their efforts to tackle insecurity across the country. “As always, ACF pledges full and unalloyed support to the Government and the security agencies in their endeavours to stamp out the scourge of terrorism and banditry in Nigeria,” Muhammad-Baba added.