In a public display of deep apprehension and sorrow, a Katsina State lawmaker, Ibrahim Umar Dikko, broke down in tears, raising alarm that bandits have overran eight of the 10 wards in Matazu Local Government Area of the State.
Addressing his colleagues in parliament, an emotionally distressed Dikko said that the attack has reportedly continued with no respite for the people.
Dikko, who is the Chief Whip of the Katsina House of Assembly (KSHA), stunned fellow parliamentarians during Tuesday’s plenary, claiming that 12 people were killed in just two days and farmers can no longer access their farms due to the deadly activities of the bandits.
Amid tears, he informed the House that, “Out of the 10 wards, eight are under siege. Farmers cannot go to farms.
“Just yesterday, by the entrance of the town near the secondary school, they killed a young man and rustled four oxen.”
Reacting to Dikko’s disturbing reports, the lawmakers swiftly passed motions urging both State and Federal governments to send troops’ reinforcements to Matazu LGA and neighbouring Sabuwa, as well as investigate the sudden withdrawal of security personnel from several communities across the North West state.
Meanwhile, some residents are apprehensive that the situation is becoming dire each passing day with the bandits and other criminal elements having a free rein in tormenting most communities.
Reports indicated that farmlands in some villages across Matazu and Sabuwa have remained inaccessible, with families displaced.
With the bandits launching repeated raids with impunity on different communities, one resident of Rinjin Idi village, who gave his name as Aminu Murtala, told reporters, “We have not seen any fresh deployment. People are too scared to return to their farms.”
The Rinjin Idi village is one of six communities that wrote a petition to the State governor this month over worsening insecurity in their respective areas.
However, reacting to the development, Chairman of Matazu Local Government Council, Shamsuddeen Muhammad Sayaya, appealed for calm.
This is as he assured the people that the authorities are working “tirelessly” with relevant agencies to beef up security and restore peace within the affected areas.
