Former Senator representing Kaduna Central, Shehu Sani, on Monday, February 8, 2021 beckoned on the Federal government to allow Northwest communities to protect their lands from bandits.
He said this while reacting to the statement of the governor of the state, Nasir El-Rufai, who told newsmen on Monday, that the government would not negotiate with killers and kidnappers who engage in punishable actions.
Recall that Sheikh Ahmad Gumi, an Islamic cleric had in a dialogue with bandits on Tuesday, February 2, 2021, appealed to the government to make peace with them, in order to stop the kidnapping menace causing bloodshed in the country.
Gumi had narrated his encounter after visiting the stronghold of attackers, appealing to them to accept peace.
While briefing the Governor of Zamfara State, Bello Matawalle, he said,
“In most of the bandits and Fulani camps we have visited in Zamfara, I come to understand that what is happening in the state is nothing but an insurgency.”
Some people are of the view that the bandits should be fought and killed, but what we understand is that majority of them are illiterates who need proper education and enlightenment,”
Sani also called on the federal government to provide the region with the required equipment to neutralize all criminals.
Sani disclosed on his Twitter handle that the Northwest region over a long time had been ravaged by bandits who come in motorcycles to commit their atrocities.
He further said these bandits operate without impunity, raping, kidnapping, and killing locals, and sometimes it takes days before the corpse of the victims is found.
“Bandits have ravaged and pillaged most parts of the rural northwest. They move on motorcycles, raze villages, kill and rape with impunity. It takes some days to find some of the corpses of their victims. If you can’t protect your land don’t interrupt those who decide to.”