The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has donated food and non-food items to the military for Operation Safe Corridor Programme, a programme for the rehabilitation of eight hundred (800) repented and surrendered Boko Haram insurgents.

According to a statement on Tuesday by the Agency’s Public Relations Officer, Sani Datti, the Director General of NEMA, Muhammad Sani Sidi while presenting the items said, “The initiative, which is in line with international best practices allowed those engaged in the fighting to voluntarily surrender and embrace peace so that they undergo rehabilitation’’.

He said NEMA would play its role in the programme by providing regular support of food and non-food items for their up keep.

Items to be released every three months according to the statement are, ”410 bags of rice, 400 bags of beans, 200 bags of millet, 200 bags of sorghum, 750 cartons of spaghetti, 50 cartons of Maggi cubes and 810 cartons tomato paste. Others are 101 Vegetable oil in 20 liter kegs, 101 palm oil in 20 liter kegs, 50 bags of salt, 100 bags of sugar, 420 cartons of milk and 420 cartons of milo chocolate.

“The non food items include; 800 pieces of mattress, 500 hundred pieces of blanket, 500 pieces of nylon mats, 1000 plastic buckets, 1000 plastic spoons, 1000 plastic cups 1000, plastics plates, 1000 plastic pairs of slippers, 2000 men’s wear, 63 cartons of bath soap and 1000 bath towels.”

Receiving the items, the Coordinator of  Operation Safe Corridor, Brigadier- General BM Shafa said the initiative was designed to de-radicalize, rehabilitate and re-integrate willing and repented Boko Haram insurgents.

“Between September last year and February this year, a good number of Boko haram have come out to surrender” he added.

He thanked the Gombe State Government for providing the location and giving them all the necessary support.

Azeez