Banditry in Northwest can ‘swallow’ Nigeria, Governor Matawalle warns

The Governor, however, lamented that the North lacks responsible leadership to steer it through troubled waters the region finds itself, as its ruling elite have no vision for the region beyond gaining political power.

He, however, said that agelong injustice and leadership failure were responsible for the banditry ravaging the region, and not the much-talked-about mining in Zamfara.

Matawalle stated this in Kaduna, while presenting a lead paper entitled “The Fight Against Banditry in Northwest Nigeria: Challenges and Solutions” during the inauguration of the new executives of Arewa Media Writers’ Association held at Kabir Gymnasium.

Represented by his Commissioner for Information, Alhaji Ibrahim Magaji Dosara, the Governor also described lack of support from a section of political elite interested in taking advantage of the crises to score political points and reluctance by affected ”states” to embrace peace dialogue as bottlenecks to ending banditry and other related crimes in the region.

“When I assumed office on May 29, 2019, Zamfara State had already been mired in a serious security crisis for over a decade, marked by banditry, livestock rustling, kidnapping, and a host of other crimes. On an almost daily basis, the state was in the news for bloodletting, fire, pillage, and significant displacement of people, particularly those living in rural areas.

“The historical, economic, social and cultural ties between the dominant communities of Fulani and Hausa were ruptured; farming activities across the state were halted, and commercial activities were crippled.

“With poverty on the increase and food security seriously affected by the crisis, the state was on the verge of a catastrophic social eruption capable of destabilising our communities and the Northwest sub-region.

“Rural banditry in Zamfara and other parts of the North, in my opinion, is as a result of the progressive degradation of our moral standards and a culture of greed fed by an unfettered need for material goods.

“The North lacks responsible leadership to steer it through our time’s uncharted waters. Our ruling elite have no vision for the region beyond gaining political power. We have all seen how the elite in the Southeast and Southwest respond in unison to all matters concerning their regions’ development.

“We have seen how they have a defined agenda and are relentless in their pursuit of regional development.

“Unless we wake up to the situation, the war against banditry in the Northwest will remain a significant security challenge that has the potential to swallow the region and the country. The destruction that banditry is wreaking on the region’s people and the economy is unfathomable,” he said.

The Governor said part of the efforts made by his administration to combat banditry in Zamfara was trying to understand the root cause of the conflict.

He said it was discovered that rural banditry in Zamfara and other parts of the North is a result of  “progressive degradation of our moral standards and a culture of greed fed by an unfettered need for material good. The culture of cattle raiding by pastoralist groups is not something new. It was practised in the days gone by to demonstrate courage and bravery, and no violence was used.

He, however, appealed to Northern leaders to “wake up from their lethargy and unite in combating this grave challenge. We need to get to the roots of the situation, stop politicising it and act decisively.”