Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), says his administration would be willing to engage in dialogue with individuals or groups genuinely committed to peace, while taking decisive action against those determined to continue criminal activities.
Obi spoke during an interview with Rufai Oseni of Arise Television while outlining his approach to insecurity and national reconciliation.
Asked whether he would negotiate with criminals and bandits if elected president, the former Anambra governor said his priority would be restoring peace and unity across the country.
“I’m going to talk with everybody,” Obi said.
“Anybody who wants peace, I’ll talk with him. I’ll negotiate with him.”
He, however, drew a distinction between those willing to embrace peace and those committed to violence.
“Anybody who wants war, will go to war,” he said.
When pressed on whether that position included negotiations with bandits and criminals, Obi maintained that people should not be permanently defined by their past actions if they are willing to change.
“Anybody can say, ‘I’ve changed. I want peace,’” he said.
“I will discuss with anybody who wants peace.”
To illustrate his point, Obi recounted a visit to a university in the United States staffed largely by former inmates who had rebuilt their lives after serving prison terms.
“I visited a university in America where the entire faculty is people who came out of prison,” he said.
“From the dean of the faculty, who told me he spent 28 years in prison, to the registrar, who told me he spent 25 years. All the professors there spent years in prison for one offence or another.”
REHABILITATION
The former governor said rehabilitation and reintegration should remain possible for anyone willing to abandon criminality and contribute positively to society.
“If you say you want to change and be part of this new Nigeria we’re trying to build, that is possible, I will negotiate with you” he said.
“If you don’t want to be part of it, well, we have to tell ourselves the truth.”
Obi added that addressing insecurity would also require building a more inclusive society where no group feels marginalised.
“I will unite the country,” he said.
“I will make sure that nobody is left behind. No tribe is left behind. There will be inclusiveness. We’ll show love, we’ll show care for everybody.”
