Bello Turji, who leads a group of outlaws in northern Nigeria, has pointed fingers at the Minister of Defence (State), Bello Matawalle, for not effectively addressing banditry. Matawalle, during his time as governor of Zamfara State, attempted to handle the issue through an amnesty program, which he later retracted after the bandits failed to comply with the peace initiative.
When Matawalle was governor, he launched an amnesty program, believing that dialogue was the best way to tackle banditry. However, he had to cancel this amnesty when it became clear that the bandits were not adhering to the peace efforts his government proposed.
In a video shared on social media, Turji claims that Matawalle’s policies, during his governorship, contributed to the worsening banditry in Zamfara and other Northwestern states. He accuses Matawalle of favoring certain bandit groups. Turji explains that he took matters into his own hands, chasing away a specific group from Shinkafi and killing their leader,
In an effort to restore peace. He asserts that this group possessed 200 arms, and yet, the governor entertained them at the Government House without demanding they surrender their weapons. Another bandit group, led by Bashari Maniya, allegedly had over 300 guns.
Turji reveals that he captured 30 guns from Bashari Maniya’s group, yet they never handed over their weapons to the government. He also accuses some bandit leaders who were part of Matawalle’s peace deal of relocating to Sokoto and continuing their criminal activities.
He names Ali, a follower of Kabiru Maniya, as responsible for attacks in the Tangaza area. Turji alleges that both Kabiru and Bashari enjoy their lives in Sokoto, while another individual, Buhari, also lives freely there.
Turji questions the whereabouts of the weapons claimed to have been surrendered by these groups. He insists on video evidence showing Kabiru Maniya using machine guns and challenges the government to explain who now possesses these weapons. He urges the government to stop blaming him for the ongoing violence and kidnappings, suggesting that the real culprits are living comfortably in Sokoto while innocent people suffer.
Efforts to get a reaction from Matawalle were unsuccessful at the time of reporting. Calls to Henshaw Ogubike, a spokesperson for the Defence Ministry, went unanswered, although he did request communication via text, which remained unresponded to at the time of filing this report.
Previously, Matawalle has denied any connections to the bandits, asserting that his administration did everything possible to address Zamfara’s security issues during his tenure.
