New Telegraph

There Should Be No Negotiations With Bandits!

The recent directive given by President Bola Tinubu to the Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle and the Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Christopher Musa, ordering the military brass to relocate to the embattled North-West geo-political zone, seriously ravaged by the blood-letting activities of bandits, should be hailed as a decisive decision.

But it is long in coming. And that is because it runs quite in sync with the statutory functions of government; to protect the sanctity of human life as expressly stated in Section 14 Sub-section ( 2) (b) of the 1999 Constitution, as amended. According to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data (ACLED), the number of people killed in the embattled North-West surged from 124 in 2018 to 1,031 in 2022.

There was an estimated figure of 13,485 deaths recorded in that same part of the country between 2010 and May 19, 2023. Listed as part of the atrocities of the bandits include the raiding of villages, stealing of livestock, kidnapping for ransom and the wanton murder of farmers.

The states so affected include Katsina, Kaduna, Kano, Sokoto, Jigawa and Zamfara. Combined with similar atrocities visited on defenceless citizens in the North-Eastern states of Bornu, Adamawa, Bauchi and Yobe by the Boko Haram terrorists and members of the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) the Federal Government’s inadequate response over the past decades has left more questions than answers.

The worrisome aspect has had to do with the granting of spurious amnesty to the killers, as if their lives were more important than those of their voiceless victims.

That perhaps, explains the audacious display by the notorious bandit kingpin, Bello Turji, and his gang who recently celebrated the capture of a Nigerian Army Armoured Personnel Carrier, and setting it ablaze, as confirmed by a counter insurgency and security expert in the Lake Chad region, Zagazola Makama. This should be instructive. In fact, it should serve as a strong warning to the Federal Government to

In fact, the Federal Government should take a cue from the United States, US which never pays ransom to criminals of any sort and prosecutes those who do so

live up to its responsibilities to the citizens. Indeed, the Federal Government should never capitulate to the antics, whims and caprices of Turji, who has sent many innocent citizens to their early graves but is now asking for negotiation with the government. That was after seizing several ammunitions as well as the military’s carrier stuck in the mud.

Worrisome is the aberrant handling of the blood-letting activities of the so called bandits, who have over the years been terrorizing several villages in the northern states. Of significance, is the painful fact that huge sums of money has been paid to the bandits by farmers to access their farms, as well as for the release of their helpless captives, but the menace of banditry, kidnapping and terrorism continues.

For instance, in July 2022 media reports revealed that N13.662 billion was paid as ransom in 11years for 7, 568 people kidnaped! And on August 30, 2024 SBM Intelligence Report stated that N1.048 billion was paid as ransom between July 2023 and June 2024.

Subsequently, it was reported on September 1, 2024 that over N160 billion ransom and levies as the humongous sums paid to bandits. In the light of the abovestated the Tinubu-led administration should give a listening ear to the warning given by the Northern Elders for it not to be hoodwinked by the request from Turji asking for negotiation.

According to the Chairman of the Arewa Elders Progressive Group in the North-West, Alhaji Mustafa Dutsinma: “We strongly advise against this move, as it would set a dangerous precedent and undermine the government’s efforts.” Furthermore, he emphasised that “reconciling with those who have perpetrated heinous crimes against innocent citizens would be a betrayal of public trust”. Of course, it will.

In fact, the Federal Government should take a cue from the United States, US which never pays ransom to criminals of any sort and prosecutes those who do so. Instead of treating them with kid gloves, they should be made to face the full wrath of the law to serve as warning to others with similar evil inclinations.

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