The Transition Committee Chairman of Batsari Local Government Area of Katsina State, Alhaji Mannir Muazu, has decried deteriorating security situation in the area, saying inhabitants were unsafe.
He told newsmen in Batsari, yesterday, that the level of insecurity in the area is compounding by the day; in spite of presence of security personnel deployed to the area.
“We are facing insecurity challenges in the area; we are in difficult times,’’ Muazu reiterated and urged the people to initiate ways of defending themselves from bandits attack.
He said that the call was necessary because the situation could affect farming as the bandits are threatening to attack farmers in the farmlands; during the cropping season.
The chairman also called on the people to intensify prayers during Ramadan, to seek Almighty Allah’s intervention.
In a related development, residents of the local government area staged a peaceful protest to draw government’s attention to the disturbing insecurity in the area.
The protesters carried placards with inscriptions which included “No security in Batsari” and “We want security in our area.”
One of them, Mrs Yado Musa, said bandits attacked people and kidnap women regularly.
“Women are more vulnerable; they go with women, rape them, after they regain freedom, their husbands divorce them.
“And, if a woman is in labour, particularly at night, there will be no health worker to attend to her, so, we are in difficult situation; we need urgent interventions,” she said.
The News Agency of Nigeria reported that Batsari is one of the nine local governments in Katsina State sharing borders with Zamfara, that are facing insecurity problems.
On Monday, Vice Chairman of Shinkafi Local Government Area of Zamfara, Alhaji Sani Galadima, told the Minister of Interior, Lt-Gen. Abdurrahman Dambazau (retd), how councils in the state pay millions of naira, in ransom, almost on a daily basis, to bandits.
This did not, however, deter the bandits as they killed six members of the Civilian Joint Task Force (JTF) in the state, on Sunday.
Galadima made this known to Dambazau, who was on an official visit to the state, as part of efforts by the Federal Government to find sustainable solutions to the security challenges in the state.
“Six members of the Civilian JTF were attacked and killed on Sunday, by bandits, after receiving their payments from Shinkafi town and were on their way back to their villages.
“Even yesterday (Sunday), these bandits sent a letter to the district head of Shinkafi town (saying) that they were coming to attack Shinkafi.
“This ugly situation is very disheartening. Everyday, we pay millions of naira as ransom to these bandits.
“We really need government’s urgent support to end this problem.
“Our women also suffer a lot (because) the bandits attack communities and abduct ladies from their parents’ homes. People no longer sleep with their two eyes closed in the night in Shinkafi LGA.