Following the arrest and death of the most wanted criminal in Benue state, Terwase Akwaza, alias ‘Gana’, prominent Nigerians have reacted to the punishment meted out on the criminal.
According to the Commander, 4 Special Forces Command, Doma, Nasarawa state, Moundhey Ali, Gana was killed on Tuesday at a roadblock mounted by the army along Gbese-Gboko-Makurdi road following exchange of gunfire.
Daily Times recalls that the Benue State Government had in 2015 granted amnesty to over 500 persons including Gana, who were terrorising parts of Benue and Taraba states.
Gana was later in 2017 declared wanted by the police while the Benue State Government placed a N10 million bounty on him.
According to Ali: “At about 12:00 hours today (Tuesday), we received strategic information on the movement of the dreaded bandit Terwase Akwaza Agbadu AKA Gana along Gbese-Gboko-Makurdi road.
“Troops of Operation ‘Ayem Akpatuma III’ moved swiftly and mounted snap roadblocks along the routes.
“At about 13:00 hours, there was a meeting engagement with the convoy of Gana, a shoot out ensued and the bandit was killed.”
Daily Times gathered that the commander also said that 40 armed members of Gana’s gang were captured during the operation.
Barely 24 hours after his death prominent Nigerians have condemned his death, asking the federal government led by President Muhammadu Buhari why it permitted the killing of an alleged criminal that surrendered, but rehabilitate confirmed terrorists that did not surrender;
Senator Gabriel Suswam also reacted in a statement that read : ” The events of September 8, 2020, in my senatorial district where repentant criminals who had surrendered after extensive persuasions were singled out and killed extra-judicially leaves a sour taste and has opened a gaping wound that requires all efforts to heal.
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“It is no secret that my senatorial district has been traumatized and the people terrorized by activities of criminal gangs led by MR Terwase Agwaza alias Gana for many years.
“The consequences of this endless terrorism has been a steady decline of economic and social activities leaving a once prosperous people pauperized. Markets no longer attract traders, schools are closed and farmlands abandoned. Politics in the area has become a war with uncontrolled proliferation of dangerous weapons. “No responsible leader will idly standby and watch his community become a theatre of war and a gangster’s paradise.
“It is with this solution mindset that traditional rulers, clergymen and elders of the area decided to utilize means of constructive engagement and dialogue to ensure that youths of the area do not become tools for the destruction of that society”.
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