Adebayo Shittu, a former Minister of Communication, has called on the Federal Government, led by President Bola Tinubu, to negotiate with bandits and offer them a promising future. Shittu believes that many of these bandits are able-bodied men who could be retained by the government.
During his appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Tuesday, the former minister advocated for a non-kinetic approach in dealing with banditry, stating that such a strategy could yield significant results. He said, “If I am in position, it is not too late to use non-kinetic measures in negotiating with bandits, giving them a promising future. Let us retain them. Many of them are very intelligent, many of them are able-bodied.”
Shittu also highlighted the issue of the millions of out-of-school children in Northern Nigeria, describing it as a “production factory for banditry” in the country.
His comments come at a time when controversial Islamic cleric, Ahmad Gumi, has also urged the Federal Government to negotiate with bandits. Gumi advised President Tinubu not to follow the path of former President Muhammadu Buhari, who refused to negotiate with bandits. This call for negotiation marks a significant shift in the discourse on how to address the issue of banditry in the country.