The Benue State Government has formally requested approval from the Federal Government to establish a Disarmament, Demobilisation, and Reintegration (DDR) centre aimed at rehabilitating over 400 repentant local bandits and their coerced associates.
The request was directed to the Chief of Defence Staff, General Olufemi Oluyede, for the setting up of the specialised facility exclusively for individuals of Benue origin involved in banditry.
Josephine Habba, Director-General of the Benue State Commission for Peace and Reconciliation, disclosed this in recent statements, explaining that biometric profiling has identified over 1,800 people linked to bandit groups in the state.
However, about 400 have expressed genuine willingness to renounce violence, surrender arms, and undergo rehabilitation.
Habba clarified that many of those profiled are not hardened criminals but were forcibly recruited or abducted and compelled to serve as foot soldiers, cooks, or in other support roles for bandits operating in forests and creeks.
She highlighted cases including pregnant women who were kidnapped and forced into domestic servitude for the groups.“Even pregnant women were abducted and turned into their cooks.
The number of people from the biometrics we have done is over 1,800, but 400 are willing to be rehabilitated,” Habba said.The proposed DDR centre, to be located in Anyiin, Logo Local Government Area, would run programmes lasting six months to a year, focusing on disarmament, psychosocial support, skills acquisition, livelihood restoration, and community reintegration.
The initiative has reportedly attracted United Nations certification and potential international support.
The state government described the approach as a “carrot” strategy under Governor Hyacinth Alia to complement ongoing security operations, promote peace, rebuild affected infrastructure like schools and hospitals, and allow repentant individuals particularly locals coerced into crime to return to farming and normal life.
The move comes amid persistent banditry, kidnappings, and attacks in Benue, where farmer-herder clashes and criminal elements have displaced communities and claimed lives.
Officials emphasized that the centre is not intended for external militants like Boko Haram but for Benue indigenes who were victims of circumstance.
No response from the Federal Government or the Chief of Defence Staff has been reported yet on the approval request.
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