A coalition of elders group under the auspices of Zamfara Elders Support for Peace and Development, has commended the president Bola Ahmed Tinubu over the ongoing military operations against armed bandits in the state.
Speaking with newsmen shortly after he visited Gumu, Talata Mafara and Kaurar Nomoda to commiserate with victims of flood disaster in those local area , chairman of the coalition, Alhaji Mammani AliyuKaura, said killing of the notorious bandits kingpin Halilu Sububu and his commanders by the gallant troops is a clear testimony to fact that the government is all out to end armed banditry in the Zamara and Northwest zone
This was contained in a press statement issued and made available to newsmen in Sokoto by the groups spokesman, Malam Iliyasu Dattijo
The chairman , however, used the visit to call on the Zamfara state governor Dr. Dauda Lawal, to concentrate on how to deliver good governance to his subjects and leave the Minister of State for Defence, Mohammed Bello Matawalle, alone.
He said that the governor can do better by building unity, development, and political cohesion in the state rather than creating unnecessary tension and overheating the polity.
The group was reacting to what it called
“outburst” against the person of Matawalle by the governor on a National television, describing it as nothing but mischievous intentions to divert the attention of Nigerians from ongoing success in the fight against banditry in his state.
He said that people of Zamfara are tired of the governor’s unnecessary outburst what they expect from the governor is support to the federal government on its effort to rid the state off banditry
Adding that corruption and bad governance allegations leveled against his Immediate predecessor were uncalled for and would not take the state anywhere
So far, the group has donated foodstuffs, toiletries, cement, and roofing sheets, among other relief items worth millions of naira, to some victims of the flood disaster in Zamfara state.
He said, “To us, Matawalle’s era is much more transparent, beneficial, peaceful, and secure to the people of Zamfara compared to what we have now.
“Today, our people are suffering poor governance, escalation of insecurity challenges, poor social amenities, and destruction of Zamfara economy and social life because their governor abandoned his constitutional duty; always on the run either to Abuja or out of the country without commensurate results to the state,” Kaura decried.
“We were surprised how Peoples Democratic Party, PDP supporters in Zamfara are surviving with a truant political leader like Governor Dauda that have sacrificed their support for his own luxury.
“We know that Yarima, Shinkafi, Yari and Matawalle are not saints, but they are more reliable, trusted, and dedicated to the progress and development of Zamfara state than Gov Dauda.”
“Government of Zamfara under present leadership has turned into a more liability for the survival of an ordinary citizen of the state going about escalation of insecurity that has destroyed social activities in the state capital and beyond,” the coalition stated
He said that the people of Zamfara are bemused on the silence of some elites in the state over the killing of Halilu Sububu and dozen of his boys as if they were not happy with success
“We are aware that there are large numbers of people, especially elites in the state, that are not happy with the kind of success recorded by the ongoing military operations against bandits, but we cannot deny the successes we have so far seen in the fight against banditry in our region.
“We, therefore, call on the Minister of State Defense, Chief of Defense Staff, and Service Chiefs not to relent on their oars. They should continue to destroy all bandits’ enclaves and those benefitting from their nefarious activities in Zamfara, Sokoto, Katsina, and Kaduna states, respectively.
“While commending the efforts and foresight of President Tinubu on the leadership support given to the military to flush out these terrorists, we want to remind him of being careful with sycophants, especially those hiding under executive chairs to unleash venomous hatred and mischief.” the coalition chairman stated