Governor of Zamfara State Bello Matawalle has advocated for the extension of retirement age of army, police and other security officers to 70 years.
Speaking in Maradun town, his country home, when he received coalition of civil society organisations who conducted a peaceful rally in support of the recent security policies of the governor in which he advocated for residents to bear arms, he asserted that if the federal government can extend the retirement age of medical doctors, university lecturers and judges, it can do same for security officers.
He stressed that majority of the army and police were retiring at a point they can perform better.
“The federal government need to look at the age of retirement for army, police and other security officers with a view to extend it to 70 years like those in judiciary, academics and medical line”, he added.
He said that series of measures were adopted by his administration in order to end the act of banditry but all ended in vain. “We started dialogue with the bandits, we closed markets and sales of petroleum and also, shutdown telecoms networks but it never worked,” he said.
Therefore, as state governor who has does not have absolute control of the army, police and other security agents what remain as an option was to ask residents to take arms to defend themselves against bandits.
Earlier, the leader of coalition of civil societies in the state, Adamu Kwatarkwashi said the coalition were in Maradun town to express their support for the security policies introduced by the government.
“We are solidly behind the security police you have introduced recently, as the killing of people has reached its climax,” he added.
Leader of the coalition, however said for several years the federal government has failed to take appropriate measures to end the killings in Zamfara State and other states in the North West.
