Governor Bello Matawalle has told residents of Zamfara state to defend themselves against bandit attacks.
Speaking during a special prayer session to mark the second year anniversary of his administration, Matawalle said the directive became necessary to draw teams of agile youths that would be saddled with the responsibility of crushing criminals.
He said;
“The insecurity situation has defied solution, as such people should defend themselves.
“I am calling on the people of the state to defend themselves if the bandits attack them.
“My government has approved that whenever the bandits attack you, don’t wait for the security personnel to come to your rescue. You should rise up and protect yourselves.
“My government has also planned to recruit locals from each community who will be in charge of monitoring their villages to ensure that bandits don’t attack them.
“I’m calling on the traditional rulers and community leaders to make sure that only people of proven integrity are recruited.”
The Zamfara state Governor also called on the traditional rulers to fish out the bad eggs in their communities that were conniving with the bandits.
Matawalle added;
“The communities should be watchful and fish out criminal elements among them. This is to ensure that wolves in sheep’s clothing are weeded out of the system.
“There are some people who take delight in these brutal attacks by the armed men. If you think you have no hands in these heinous acts come out with a clean heart and swear by Almighty Allah as I have been doing.
“Securing the lives and property of every one in the state remains my number one priority and we will continue to pursue all legitimate means to make sure that we restore peace in our troubled communities.”
