Why Katsina is under Siege of Banditry

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Chairman, Senate Committee on Labour and Productivity, Senator Abu Ibrahim, has traced the high spate of banditry and kidnapping in Katsina State to its closeness to Zamfara State.

Taking a hard look at the increasing wave of banditry in the state, the Katsina South Senator warned that if prompt action was not taken to address the unhealthy situation, it was spill over to other states.

Describing the level of lawlessness in the state as unacceptable, Ibrahim said he believed President Muhammadu Buhari will be tough on the issue in the interest of the state and adjourning states.

The lawmaker said that he had already suggested that all the police personnel that had been in the area for three years should be posted out to inject new blood in the security composition of the state.

He said that governors should step up action aimed at dealing with the situation.

Ibrahim said: “What is happening in Katsina State is because we’re bordering Zamfara State, so it’s a spillover of what’s happening in the neighbouring states.

“If we’re not careful, it will spill over to other states. I believe President Buhari will be tough on this.

“We need the governors to do more. I went to my four local governments, and that is the issue I found out.

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“I said they should post out all policemen in the areas that have been there for three years.

“I feel maybe they have become sympathetic to the people doing this. The situation requires urgent action.”

On the no love lost relationship between the All Progressives Congress (APC) National Chairman Comrade Adams Oshiomhole and some members of the party, Ibrahim said that party leaders should sit down with the party chairman to address issues.

He said: “Buhari’s votes are not transferable. We have lost states, so we have to do a lot of work.

“The National Chairman has done very well. Everybody has his own problem. I think what he has to say in one or two words, he will say so in 20 words.

“He was a governor, but he has to accept the fact that he must take into cognizance the opinions of other members of the NWC.

“The party should sit down with him and see if he is calling meetings and doing the right things.”

On the impact of the National Assembly on him, the four- time Senator said: “The National Assembly made me a true Nigerian. It allowed me to meet Nigerians with a lot of experience.

“If I start mentioning names, you will be surprised.

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“I don’t segregate against any Nigerian from any part of the country.

“The last four terms I’ve been in the Senate gave me a lot of experience and room to know a lot of things.

“My relationship with Senator Bola Tinubu started here in 1992.

“That relationship was what I used in making Tinubu meet with Buhari, which eventually led to the birth of APC.

“I first met Chief Clark as a member of the National Assembly.

“I’m grateful to God for being here and for making me meet different Nigerians.

“My being here is an achievement because it gave me an opportunity to contribute my quota to the development of the country.

“I’ll never regret my being in the National Assembly. It’s a very nice experience.

“I sponsored some bills, and the most important one of them is the police fund bill. I also sponsored a bill on statehood.

“If you dislike anybody because of his tribe or ethnic group, you’re fighting God.”

NAN

Samson Oyedeyi