Zamfara State Governor, Dauda Lawal, has declared that he has the capacity to end banditry in the state within two months if given direct control over security agencies.
Speaking during a live media chat with local radio stations at the Government House in Gusau, Governor Lawal lamented that the major obstacle to tackling the crisis is that security operatives in Zamfara still take instructions from Abuja rather than the state government.
“I can tell you the whereabouts of every bandit kingpin in Zamfara, even with my phone. I can point to you where they are right now. But I do not control security agencies, and that is the problem,” Lawal said.
He cited a recent incident in Shinkafi Local Government where dozens were killed, claiming that security forces on the ground failed to act because they were awaiting authorization from Abuja.
Despite this challenge, the governor noted that his administration has been supporting security operatives with logistics and funding to aid their operations.
Meanwhile, the Zamfara State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has strongly criticised the governor’s comments, accusing him of “harboring bandits” and failing to deliver on his campaign promise to end insecurity within two months of assuming office.
In a statement by its Publicity Secretary, Yusuf Idris, the APC said Governor Lawal’s repeated claims of knowing the locations of bandit leaders without acting on the information amounted to complicity.
“We don’t know why he is harbouring them in the state and continues to allow them to kill and abduct innocent citizens, or perhaps because he wants to use them against his political rivals,” the statement alleged.
The party accused the governor of politicising insecurity, claiming he has failed to adequately fund security agencies despite boasting about providing vehicles for them.
“While boasting that he bought and distributed 150 vehicles to security agencies, he failed to say that they were given not as operational vehicles but as mobility cars, without support for fueling and maintenance. In contrast, former Governor Bello Matawalle distributed 200 fully equipped operational vehicles with allowances for logistics,” the APC said.
The opposition also challenged Lawal to review his campaign promises, stressing that his recent remarks only highlight his failure to protect lives and property.
“Let him concentrate on delivering his campaign promises of ending banditry in two months and stop apportioning blame. Now is the time for action, not media propaganda,” the APC insisted.
