CSOs flay recruitment of Hakika Islamic extremists in Nasarawa

Civil society organisations (CSOs) in Nasarawa State have expressed concerns over the alarming rate at which the dreaded Hakika Islamic extremists are being recruited in the state.

A security expert, Dr. Nawni Aboki, gave the hint at a one-day training for CSOs on preventing and countering violent extremism organised by the North East Regional Initiative (NERI) in Lafia.

Aboki, an expert in terrorism studies, disclosed that recruitment of the Islamic sect was ongoing in Lafia and some parts of Toto Local Council.

He said a recent security report released by the State Security Services (SSS) revealed that the group was carrying out recruitment in Toto area, which prompted further enquiry by stakeholders.

Aboki, however, said ongoing recruitment is being done secretly in Lafia, as the sect offers free feeding and empowerment to the recruits, who are mainly Islamic youths.

He cautioned that if government does nothing to check the recruitment exercise, the consequences could be deadlier than that of the Boko Haram terrorists.

The CSOs also lamented that Boko Haram terrorists who escaped from the Northeast are currently taking refuge in North Central, South South and Southwest states.

The workshop was aimed at training CSOs to counter extremism in the country through sensitisation of the general public on the need to see security as not only government’s responsibility but also that of the citizens.

Participants at the workshop expressed gratitude to the organisers and urged them to involve the police and other security outfits in subsequent trainings.

One of the participants, Michael Dauda, told The Guardian that the training was timely because the influx of strange faces to Lafia in the last six months was becoming worrisome.

“There is unprecedented influx of people into the state in recent times and they are from the North because most of them don’t understand English and you find them mostly doing transport with Okada and Keke NAPEP,” he said.

He cautioned members of the public to be security conscious and report any strange faces with any form of suspicious character to security agents.