Senator Adams Oshiomhole, representing Edo North Senatorial District, has strongly criticized Nigeria’s deradicalisation programme for terrorists, arguing that many previously “reformed” extremists returned to violent acts.
Oshiomhole made the comments during a Senate debate on the proposed amendment to the 2022 Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, which seeks to impose the death penalty on kidnappers.
The former Edo State governor emphasized that terrorists who commit murder and other grievous crimes should face the full force of the law, including capital punishment if convicted.
He stated, “In the past, terrorists responsible for killings and other heinous crimes were apprehended and deradicalized at public expense. Yet, some of them reverted to terrorism. We cannot continue spending taxpayer money to capture these dangerous individuals only for them to be shielded by legal loopholes or deradicalisation programmes.”
Oshiomhole added, “Those who kill, even according to the Holy Bible and Quran, have no right to live. That discretion is now removed. From now on, anyone caught committing such crimes will face the death penalty if convicted.”
The senator’s remarks come amid ongoing insecurity in several Nigerian states, where terrorist activities have claimed thousands of lives, displaced countless citizens, and led to the death and injury of numerous Nigerian Army personnel.
