Kaduna Government Has Failed us as Bandits Kill our People with Impunity – DanMasanin Birnin Gwari Cries Out
NEWS DIGEST – A top Chieftain in Kaduna state Emirate of Birnin Gwari has accused the Kaduna State Government of been insensitive to the plight of people in the Birnin Gwari Emirate thereby exposing them to daily killings.
Speaking with the Guardian Newspaper, Zubair Abdurra’uf Idris, Dan Massani Birnin-Gwari, said there is complete lawlessness and Anarchy in Birnin Gwari, a part of Kaduna state.
In his words: “What has been happening in Birnin-Gwari is outright anarchy and lawlessness of the greatest order. A group of bandits has constituted itself into sole authority in charge of the areas surrounding Birnin-Gwari. They have been operating unchallenged. Presently, a lot of our people are killed daily.”
Speaking further, Zubair said the State Government has refused to act in a way that would ensure stoppage of the incessant daily killings
“sadly, the state Government is looking the other way, while all these destructions are going on; hence my decision to cry out before we all get killed. All of us, including our
neighbours cannot sleep at night and during the day.
“That is how grievous the situation is. For the past 10 years, Birnin-Gwari has been
experiencing what I call “terror attacks” in the name of cattle rustling, and nobody is doing anything about it. It all started with cattle rustling, but the bandits later graduated into full-scale armed robbers, engaging in kidnapping alongside other sundry crimes.
“The bandits started operations precisely on December 29 and 30 2012. They have since metamorphosed into a terrorist organisation. Their method of operation is similar to that of Boko Haram,” he alleged.
Zubair who also serves as the spokesperson for the Emirate also said in 2012, the Bandits raided all banks in Birnin-Gwari but they were not challenged even during the act
“From the night of December 29 to early morning of December 30 2012, the group raided all the banks in Birnin-Gwari, unchallenged. During that operation, they deployed all manner of arms, including dynamites to gain access into bank vaults. The Nigeria Police Station in Birnin-Gwari was burnt, with all the arms and ammunitions carted away. And because of that ugly experience, the banks have refused to return to Birnin-Gwari, except for Unity Bank that was lucky to have escaped the attack.,About three weeks after that operation, they went to Dogo-Dawa village, where they killed 26 people, who were saying their early morning prayers sometime in January 2013. Since then till now, these bandits have been killing people unchallenged.”
He further said that despite promising them security maximally in Birnin-Gwari during campaigns for Electioneering,the Kaduna state Governor El-Rufai has abandoned his promise and left people to their fate.
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“When Governor El-Rufai came to campaign, he told us that security in Birnin-Gwari would be his priority. But what happened after he won the election? He simply abandoned us to our fate. A year ago, he came to Birnin-Gwari for Salah celebration. Since then, neither
him nor any of his officials has visited Birnin-Gwari, either to sympathise with or pay condolence for all the killings and maiming that have been going on”
The Dan Masanin of Gwari blamed Maladministration for the continuous attack: “Mal-administration. What do you expect, when government officials are busy looting resources meant for the masses? They live in affluence, while the rest of us are suffering.
“Able-bodied men and women that cannot find legitimate work to do engage in all manner
of crimes. This is the situation in the north. With regard to current situation in Kaduna State, I would say the country’s economic situation is responsible for the ugly situation.
“Many people in these areas are economically disadvantaged. Most of these armed bandits are not spirit; they live among the people around. But in order to survive, some people
whose cattle have been stolen have taken to crimes and become very vicious in the process.
“According to the investigations we conducted sometime ago, some of these bandits had their cattle stolen by other bandits that came to Birnin-Gwari from other areas in the North.
“The initial group of bandits that came to steal cattle and people’s properties in Birnin-Gwari are a combination of Fulanis from Niger and Mali, as well as robbers from other countries in West and North Africa. They are mostly Fulanis that are aided and abetted by
some people in the Country”.
Speaking further he said even Soldiers are been killed without any action taken:
“About a month ago, 11 soldiers were killed in Birnin-Gwari territory, and up till now, there has been no statement from Kaduna government condemning it. The state government does not think people of Birnin-Gwari exist.
“Birnin-Gwari are the only people in the state with no representation in El-Rufai’s cabinet. Secondly, as the state governor, El-Rufai should have liaised with security agencies in the country to carry out aerial bombardments on the bandits’ camps, because we have already identified the areas where they operate. This is what we want.
“As a matter of urgency, Kaduna State and the Federal Government should do all within their powers to repair the roads from Birnin-Gwari to Kaduna, Birnin-Gwari to Funtua and from Birnin-Gwari to Jebba. These roads are the economic roots and life wires of our people. They are all in deplorable conditions, which is why these armed bandits are
having a field,” he said.
Reacting to the claims, Samuel Aruwan the Chief Press Secretary to the Kaduna State Government said efforts are in place to ensure that the problem is tackled even as the state Government has invested a lot in the resolution of the crisis rocking Birnin-Gwari, he also said solving the problems is beyond just the Government but needs collaborative efforts too. He restated the El-Rufai led tenure readiness to curb insecurity continually in the state.
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