Niger Banditry; My People Will Defend Themselves Against Arm Bandits – Sen. Sani Musa

Senator Sani Musa stated this while reacting to the attacks by bandits at Kundu and Yakila in Rafi Local Government area on Saturday which left at least four policemen killed, many villagers wounded and several others kidnapped.

The attacks in Kagara, the headquarters of Rafi local came barely 24 hours after armed bandits on Friday attacked and killed two policemen that were detailed to provide security to some Engineers from Shiroro Hydro Electricity Dam on routine maintenance work on high tension at Kusasu village in Shiroro local government area of the state.

Over five hundred people, mostly women have flee their homes in these two local government following the escalation of Banditry activities in their communities in the last five days.

The lawmaker in a statement in Minna on Monday expressed displeasure over the seeming inability of the government to find lasting solution to the security challenge in the area, saying that his people will have no choice than to defend themselves.

“My heart is pained seeing the bloodletting in my constituency. Women are raped and killed, Men are maimed and children rendered fatherless. This development is really sad, especially that it has remained a recurring decimal.

The Senator pointed out that despite several appeals to the federal government for a decisive action against the bandits, the situation seems to be escalating, strssing that the situation now is that of everybody to himself and God for us all.

“We have made several appeals to the federal government, we paid courtesy visit to His Excellency the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, President Muhammadu Buhari on our predicament, but yet no end to these marauders carnage as they keep killing and maiming our people,” he said.

Worried by this development, Senator Musa said the youths in the area have decided to defend themselves against the bandits since the government has shown lack of concern to their plights.

“The youths in my constituency have decided henceforth to defend themselves in view of the failure of the federal government to address the lingering challenge. We have tried to calm them down all this while, assuring them of federal government’s intervention.

“But now they have lost hope, and have made up their minds to defend themselves in any way they can. They have lost hope that the federal government will do any justice to their plights.”

Senator Sani Musa disclosed that following the failure of the makeshift security arrangements in the areas, he had in March this year appealed to President Muhhadu Buhari on the need to direct the Nigerian Army to set up a permanent base in some of the affected local government areas to help scare away the bandits.

According to him, “the military base would be better than the current makeshift arrangements where troops are only deployed when there is an attack and withdrawn as soon as there is relative calmness only for the bandits to attack almost immediately. But, the Federal Government is yet to give the directive.

“Mr President must come to the aid of the people. Their lives and livelihood are hanging in the balance, with economic activities completely stalled. Farmlands have been destroyed and many abandoned by their owners who have fled their homes in fear of the unknown”.