Still on Sokoto banditry

The other day, an otherwise learned university lecturer, a Professor of Economics, Nasir Mukhtar Gatawa, addressed a news conference in Sokoto at which he vicariously heaped all the blame of the increasing wave of insecurity in Sokoto state on the lapses of Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal and his administration.

When however, he was invited and courteously asked by the Department of State Security, DSS, in the state to substantiate his allegations, a whimpering, tongue-tied Professor apologized, pleading that he was “misinformed and misled”. By who? Anyway, whoever and, if he was truly misled and misinformed, Gatawa’s action doesn’t come with the candour, scholarly integrity and empiricism we expect from a social scientist of the stature of a professor of economics.

Professor Gatawa was merely the most supposedly enlightened one among the motley horde of hirelings and foot soldiers who have publicly made similar spurious, infantile and baseless remarks assailing the integrity and outstanding records of Governor Tambuwal in all and every facets of governance since his assumption of office. Clearly, they are working in the service of certain desperate  and disgruntled politicians engaged in an obviously vain agenda of vengeance and vendetta with eyes on their goals for 2023.

And, talking of apportioning blame over the calamity of armed banditry in Sokoto in particular, some questions arise that must be probed and put in their proper perspectives for objective, rational answers. Firstly, can anyone advance rational proof, or incontrovertible evidence that Governor Tambuwal was directly or indirectly, involved in the creation, arming and encouraging the senseless, ungodly, blood sucking, Godforsaken marauders? To everyone with the smallest iota of the fear of Allah SWT, the answer is a resounding NO!

It doesn’t take rocket science to know that those who are apparently reaping from the mayhem are those now sponsoring the senseless campaign of calumny. Sadly, they are dancing on the graves and losses of the hapless, unfortunate victims who have either died or incurred huge material possessions.

Ever since the incident of banditry spilled over from neighbouring Zamfara to Sokoto, it is public knowledge that the state government under Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, has severally provided huge sums of funds for armament, accommodation and sundry logistical support in aid of all the relevant security agencies in the state. The latest of such support was in the purchase and distribution of over ninety brand new pickup vehicles to the police and military formations combating banditry as well as other crimes in the state.

The government of Tambuwal has put in place all communities in the state, functional neighbourhood or vigilante security bodies of volunteers to collaborate with regular security agencies in intelligence gathering, detection and combat engagement with the bandits. This strategy has visibly worked to reduce the menace. This is in addition to the mobilization of traditional rulers and religious clerics to enhance the government’s sensitization campaign of the citizenry on the need for vigilance and support to the security agencies.

What more should Tambuwal have done that he has failed to do in view of the limits of available resources and the  powers  constitutionally conferred on his office? To blame governor Tambuwal with regards to the phenomenon of banditry in Sokoto state, is like castigating governors of Borno,  Yobe or Adamawa states for their inability to tame  the Boko Haram insurgency; the same way that governor Aminu Bello Masari should be  crucified over the more devastating activities of the bandits in Katsina state.

The point is that, Tambuwal,  like other state chief executives are, as a matter of fact, not in the position to enforce much of what is required in the enforcement of law and order in the states. This is because of the simple fact known to any fool that, the burden of securing the entire country, constitutionally, lies squarely on President Muhammadu Buhari,  the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, who also has the ultimate control over the Police Force and every other intelligence agency. Why then, are the mischievous, treacherous rabble rousers in Sokoto so shy of calling a spade a spade by admitting that, it is their APC federal government that has woefully failed in securing Nigerians, including the people of Sokoto state? Certainly, it doesn’t make sense beating around the bush or self denial if the genuine objective is finding a solution to the menace of banditry in Sokoto. We all know where the blame lies.

However, if for obvious but sorrowing reasons, we should overlook the glaring, abysmal deficiencies of President Buhari in the area of actualization of his party’s article of faith or, cardinal agenda on security, contained in their manifesto, what should we also do with his party’s minions who are indigenes of Sokoto state and who occupy strategic positions in the nation’s entire security architecture? 

For instance, the leader and “godfather” of the APC in the state, Senator Aliyu Magatakarda Wamakko, is the serving Chairman of the Senate Committee on Defence which puts him on a very high pedestal if we are talking of influence and authority in matters of security. Why has Alu failed or refused to leverage on his exalted position to get the security agencies to do the needful in his home state?

Same goes for Senator Ibrahim Abdullahi Gobir, another APC senator from the state and who chairs the Committee on Intelligence. In that capacity and as the representative of the worst affected zone in the Red Chamber, is it not more practical and commonsensical for those accusing Waziri Tambuwal, to direct their anger and venoms at Senator Gobir? What has he done with his powers, authority and influence in the police agency to save the people of his Sokoto East from the menace of banditry?

The only one time that we saw Gobir speak about the crisis on the floor of the Senate, was when he told the world that troops from Niger Republic rather than men of the Nigerian Army were those fighting the bandits in his constituency! Really, foreign troops on Nigerian soil? That was to say the least, an embarrassment of the people of his constituency, a ridiculing of the nation’s Armed Forces and an indictment of the APC government.

Finally on the list of persons much more deserving of focus blame are, again, the duo of Alhaji Muhammed Maigari Dingyadi, Minister of Police Affairs and, Alhaji Ahmed Aliyu, the Executive Secretary of the Police Trust Fund. Especially the Police Affairs Minister, we in Sokoto had expected that Maigari Dingyadi would have used his executive powers over the police to reinforce the security presence and actions in our state.  We have not heard, seen talk less of feeling the impact of his position.  Of course, Ahmed Aliyu can be said to be just coming on board as the PTF Executive Secretary, we will not be surprised if at the end of the day, nothing is done by him by way of salvaging the catastrophe of bandits and banditry in his home state, Sokoto.

There are only two conceivable reasons that these Sokoto APC chieftains refuse to be proactive on the killings in their own state, in spite of their prominent, commanding roles in the nation’s security structure. One is the folly of regarding the situation in Sokoto State as a political gain against Governor Tambuwal. The other is the feeling of malice and resentment against the people for turning their backs on their party in the 2019 governorship election.

So much for APC’s senseless quest for scapegoats and shifting blames forgetting that, as the old saying goes, “when you point an accusing finger at others, the other three are pointed at you”. That is saying in the Hausa language, laifi tudu ne sai ka taka naka zaka hangan na wani.

Bodinga writes from Kofar Atiku, Sokoto.

Leave a Reply