…Tambuwal updates Buhari on massacre
Residents of Sabon Birni Local Government Area of Sokoto State have narrated how they were attacked by bandits.
Recall that dozens of people in the council area were killed by bandits in separate attacks on Sunday and Wednesday with some residents alleging that the death toll has reached 70.
According to one of the residents of Garki, the community worst hit in the attacks, who declined to have his name in print, the attacks may have been in retaliation for killing of some bandits by the police in the area.
He said: “Obviously, they came to take revenge for the killing of two bandits at Garki community by the police in Sabon Birni, LGA on May 22.
“We were aware of their coming, (and) through phone calls we notified the security agents, however, no action was taken.”
According to another source, aside from the 25 people the bandits killed in Garki, they also mowed down 13 at Dan-Aduwa, 25 at Kuzari, five at Masawa and six at Katuma.
“The bandits came from afar away. On their way to Sabon Birni, they passed through several villages, we received multiple phones calls from the villages that have mobile network, informing residents of Sabon Birni that hundreds of bandits were heading our way to avenge the killing of their brothers.
“We notified soldiers and the police about the development, however, nothing was done to prevent the attack on Wednesday,” the source opined.
A resident of Garki community, Ilaya Garki, said: “We ran to Sabon Birni for safety, but since Wednesday we have been sleeping on the streets and under the trees. Nobody has come to our aid. We need help as most of us have no relatives in Sabon Birni town.
Meanwhile, Governor Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto State met President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday behind closed doors at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
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The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the meeting was at the instance of the governor.
Speaking to State House correspondents at the end of the meeting, Tambuwal said he was in the presidential villa to update the president on the security situation in Sokoto State.
He said that he also demanded from the President more military intervention to check the activities of bandits in the state.
The governor disclosed that he solicited for logistics and support for the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the state.
“I requested to see the president yesterday (Thursday) and he granted me audience today (Friday).
“I have seen him, briefed him on the security situation in Sokoto State in particular; the security situation in Sokoto Eastern Senatorial District and of very special concern, Sabon Birni Local Government Area of the state.
“Apart from the previous attacks, only two days ago through banditry attacks we lost about 74 people in a very heinous and dastardly act of aggression from the bandits.
“I have briefed Mr. President on the general situation and the need for support that we require.
“When I said `we’ in this case I meant the security personnel that are there in Sokoto working day and night in synergy with each other to ensure that they maintain peace and order in the state.’’
Tambuwal expressed satisfaction with the president’s response so far in addressing the menace of bandits in the state.
He revealed that governors of the North western states including Niger state (North Central) had agreed to jointly address the problem of insecurity in the region.
On COVID-19, the governor revealed that Sokoto state had so far recorded 116 cases, 14 deaths, over 90 had recovered from the virus while only eight were remaining at the State’s Isolation Centres.
“We are working hard, the task force is doing very well; the medical team in the state is doing very well and the public response to mobilisation and awareness is paying up,’’ he added.
NAN reports that President Buhari earlier on Friday met behind closed doors with Gov. Nasiru el-Rufa’i of Kaduna State at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
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