The Battle At Bakori And The Gallantry Of The Katsina Community Watch Corps

The bandits had tried to attack Bakori some days earlier to wreak havoc on the communities. To kill, maim, kidnap and extort monies and taxes from the farmers and other community residents. The first attempt was at Dawan Laila village in Bakori local govt on the 7th of July, 2026. They suffered a huge loss at the hands of the Katsina Community Watch Corps, CWC. A lot of them were killed and those that survived fled the area on the hot pursuit of the CWC. But they had gone on to prepare an even heavier attack on the same local govt. On the 26th of July, 2026 at around 5.26 pm, they launched another attack, this time with a horde of over 200 bandits on motorcycles. It was a desperate attempt to recover lost ground from their previously ill-fated attack.

They were led by the notorious Idi Abubakar Aiki, who was joined by bandits from the Ado Alero group from Zamfara state. They attacked Guga village, but “fortunately” for them, the intelligence gathered by the CWC was spot on, as the bandits had been preparing to dislodge the CWC protecting the communities in the Bakori area. The CWC were ready for them when they attacked. A violent confrontation ensued, and the bandits lost over 40 men in the battle. They also lost eight senior commanders in the fight. They had to withdraw and flee the area. Clearance operations have since commenced to mop up abandoned weapons, motorcycles and injured bandits from the battle. The CWC also lost four of its gallant men to the fight.

It is heartwarming to see that local vigilante initiatives, such as the CWC established by the Katsina state government, are defeating hordes of bandits in their attacks on peace-loving communities. Since the inception of the Dikko Radda administration, the CWC was formed to fight the banditry that was pillaging the state’s local communities, dislodging them from their farming activities and denying them a means of earning a living. Close to 3,000 troops were picked from all the 361 wards of the state. They were trained by national security organisations, along with retired army and police officers from Katsina State.

They have been trained in weaponry, intelligence gathering, combat and communications. They have been equipped with motorbikes, Hilux vans, communication gadgets, and even provided with Armoured Personnel Carriers, APCs. The CWC has since been replicated in neighbouring states like Zamfara, Sokoto and Kebbi. Over time, the Katsina CWC has become a force to be reckoned with, and the bandits are not finding it easy with them. The collaboration between the army and the CWC has created hybrid forces that have achieved significant success in the last year of counter-terrorism operations. They were instrumental in the rescue of the wife of late Gen. Abubakar Rabe at Matazu.

It is also of great relief that the activities of the bandits in select communities have not distracted the Dikko Radda administration from providing governance to the people of Katsina. Just a few days ago, Gov. Radda commissioned a Cassava/ Gari processing centre in the Batsari local government area. It was renamed the Dr Abba Sayyadi Ruma Cassava/ Gari processing plant in honour of the late Minister for Agriculture and Water Resources. The idea of the project is to create jobs, reduce post harvest losses, and strengthen the cassava value chain, as agriculture is the backbone of Katsina’s economy. He also commissioned some township roads in the Batsari local govt. and inspected an ongoing secondary school project in the community. He also commissioned the renovation of the local govt secretariat. Gov. Dikko Radda also launched the KASEDA/UNDP/MSME support program in the Batsari Local Government. Beneficiaries who had earlier completed skills training in various business categories received startup packages and business tools to establish or expand their businesses. The nano categories got N150,000 each, while the small business categories got N320,000. The KASEDA/UNDP partnership had previously constructed 150 houses for IDPs in the Jibia local government area of the state. The governor also visited Daura and Funtua within the same week, to witness the success, growth and expansion of the Nigeria for Women Program Scale-Up. The state government has provided N4 billion as counterpart funding for the program, in which 57,094 women are participating and have saved up to N349 million so far. He commended the commissioner for women’s affairs, Haj. Aisha Aminu, for the success of the program, and declared that the success has energised him to create the program’s men’s initiative.

Bandits’ activities are being minimised, their control across mostly border communities is flailing, and governance is allowed to thrive. The CWC is the most robust, successful and professional security outfit created by any state that I have seen. I therefore would like to urge Dr. Dikko Radda to double down on the efforts put in place in the formation of the CWC. The troops should be doubled or tripled in number, and so should their vehicles, motorcycles, communication equipment, and Armoured Personnel Carriers. If the current group is only 3000 strong, imagine what a 6000 or even 10,000-strong group would do? The Dikko Radda mandate is all about securing Katsina, and alhamdulillah, it is doing so. May Allah bring an end to this menace, and may the souls of the gallant CWC officers who fell at Bakori rest in peace.