The location of the perpetrators of the heinous murder of 41 Zamfara residents has been revealed by an aide to Governor Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto state. Imam Imam, Tambuwal’s spokesperson, said the killers live in the forests surrounding the state, adding that the massacre is not the first of its kind in the state.
In a tweetstorm, the former newsman said the bandits have been emboldened by the lack of repercussion so much so they write letters demanding money from the residents of the communities. He tweeted: “On this #ZamfaraMassacre, we are witnessing a repeat of such barbarism year on year. The affected communities have tried various methods to tackle the bandits to little or no success.
“The FG should consider establishing a new security force dedicated to forests/firest areas security. Something like Forest Rangers, with military grade training and equipment. They can join forces with locals to effectively police communities on the fringes.“As a reporter in Zamfara some years ago, I discovered that many local communities have adequate intelligence about locations and modus operandi of the bandits, but are hampered in their ability to ward off the criminals due to inadequate armoury and ineffective security presence.
“Two axis who have suffered the most from the terror of #ZamfaraMassacre over the years are Zurmi and Dansadau. Both are surrounded by forests.“In Dansadau and surrounding areas, bandits write letters to communities asking for certain amount of money especially on market days. Terrorised residents will then tax themselves to raise the funds and deliver it to the criminals in the bush. “They (bandits) are mostly rustlers/robbers/kidnappers. Vast majority are people from the North and Niger Republic.”
