The member representing Pankshin/Kanke/Kanam Federal Constituency of Plateau State, Rt. Hon. Yusuf Gagdi has opposed the rehabilitation of insurgents and other violent criminals, insisting that anyone who deliberately takes another person’s life should face the death penalty rather than be rehabilitated.
Gagdi made the remarks while speaking on Silverbird Rhythm 93.7 FM, monitored by our correspondent in Jos, the Plateau state capital.
The third term seeking federal lawmaker argued that public funds should not be spent on rehabilitating individuals accused of killing innocent citizens, maintaining that such a policy undermines justice and fails to deter criminality.
“Any criminal, anybody that takes somebody’s life, I don’t believe he should be rehabilitated in the first instance,” he said.
The lawmaker also claimed that some security operatives have reservations about working alongside rehabilitated former insurgents, alleging that there have been cases where some of those reintegrated into society leaked operational information to criminal groups.
“In some instances, the security agencies are refusing operations because they don’t even trust the rehabilitated Boko Haram members who are among them.
“There are instances where those so-called rehabilitated people are the same people giving information to the criminals on how to ambush convoys of security agencies,” he alleged.
Gagdi also questioned the rationale behind the government’s deradicalisation and rehabilitation programme, saying he does not believe violent offenders, particularly insurgents, should benefit from such initiatives.
“So why should I believe in rehabilitation? Anybody who kills should be killed. Simple. If we had been doing that, it would have reduced the problem to the barest minimum,” he stated.
According to him, taxpayers’ money should not be used to rehabilitate individuals accused of taking the lives of the same citizens who fund government through taxes.
“Taxpayers’ money cannot be used to rehabilitate people who are killing the taxpayers. I don’t believe in that. I’ve never believed in that. I don’t believe in the rehabilitation of Boko Haram,” he added.
