Agaju Madugba, Katsina
Bandits and kidnappers operating in Katsina State have given conditions for them to abandon their inglorious trade.
For residents of about eight out of the 34 local government areas of the state life has become nightmarish in the past few months as bandits had chased them out of their communities and in most cases set the entire villages ablaze.
But respite appears to be near if relevant authorities could meet the conditions of the bandits, which include the release of two of their prominent colleagues, one Lawal Bardu and Ibrahim Nakutama said to be in the custody of security forces.
Leader of the bandits handed over the conditions to a Katsina State correspondent of a national daily, Malam Lawal Saidu, who visited one of their operational bases located at Dumbubun Muazu in Sabuwa Local Government Area of the state yesterday.
The visit, according to Saidu, was based on an invitation through intermediaries sent to him by the leader of the bandits, Idris Miyaya.
Saidu told other reporters in the state last night that, “their leader used ASN intermediary to contact me and he gave me an appointment to meet him at a primary school in Sabuwa.
“When I got to the primary school, the leader met me there, riding on a motorcycle and an AK 47 hanging on his shoulders. It was from there we rode through the forest to their hideout at Dumbubun.”
Apart from the release of their members, Saidu said that the leader of the bandits also demanded a stop to what he described as “indiscriminate killing of the Fulani.
“They also said that security operatives should stop “harassing” them when they go to the markets to carry out the business of buying and selling,” Saidu said, noting that, “they said that they were tired of the bloodshed and called for dialogue.” The statement by the bandits came on the heels of a vow by the Katsina State Police Command to flush out the bandits in the coming weeks.