Residents from about 30 communities in Zamfara State, mostly women and children, gathered in Gusau, the state capital, yesterday, to protest the worsening insecurity in their villages.
The protesters, who converged in front of the Zamfara State Government House, decried the spate of killings and kidnappings by bandits, lamenting that many of their men had either been killed or abducted.
“As you can see, we all came from about 30 villages converged in Gusau, and the majority of us who came to protest against insecurity are women and the small children, because most of our men have either been killed or kidnapped by the bandits into the bush,” one of the protesters, Lawal Kamilu said.
According to him, hundreds of people have been killed and many others kidnapped, with bandits demanding millions of naira in ransom. He explained that the villagers had sold off their belongings, including farmlands, to secure the release of some abducted relatives, leaving them with nothing.
“We are here in front of Gusau Government House to beg Governor Dauda Lawal and all other concerned authorities to look at our situation and listen to our complaints so that we have peace in our area, Kaura-Namoda and Zamfara State,” he said.
The protesters also appealed to the minister of State Defence, Bello Mohammed Matawalle, and President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to intervene urgently, saying the situation in Zamfara had become desperate.
“Zamfara is now at the mercy of Almighty God,” he added.
Meanwhile, security personnel were stationed in front of Gusau Government House and other strategic areas to control the protesters.
As of the time this report was filed, none of the government officials had come out to listen to the protesters.
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