Zamfara under bandits siege, Governor Lawal cries out

Governor Dauda Lawal of Zamfara State on Tuesday said his state is currently under siege of banditry.

Lawal, while fielding questions from State House Journalists, after meeting with President Bola Tinubu on Tuesday, said the President has however assured that something drastic will be done soon to address the security challenge.

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He disclosed that unless urgent action is taken to address the problem, the entire north stands the risks of witnessing bigger security challenge than it had ever done.

” I am here to seek the President’s help because, unless something urgent is done to tackle the problem, the entire north stands the risks of witnessing a bigger security problem than was witnessed in the past,” Lawal said.

Bandits who recently found a safe haven in Zamfara, used the state as hiding place for school children kidnapped in neighbouring states like Kaduna, Katsina, amongst others.

Lawal attributed the situation to the poor military presence in the state and pleaded with the President to increase the number of military personnel in the state.

He noted that the state has become a ” killing field” and pleaded with the President to deploy more security team to the state.

He disclosed that efforts were on by the state to arrest the situation but added that it was overwhelmed by the activities of bandits.

The state government had launched a security outfit to help tackle insecurity in the state.

The Governor noted that the security outfit was put up as part of efforts to engage local communities in securing the state.

He however lamented that the efforts enjoyed limited success as the Governor does not have constitutional backing on security issues

“As you are aware, no Governor has control over the police, Army or other security agency and that is why we have come to seek help from the President .

The security outfit has also been criticises for using the group to witch hunt his political enemies.

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Kabir Marafa, an All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftain and former Senator, had alleged that ” One Magaji Lawali, his associate, was allegedly killed in the custody of the security outfit.

“In spirited efforts to change the narratives, the state government issued two statements in less than 24 hours, claiming that the deceased died during the confrontation,” he said.