NIGERIA. Niger State: In over 50 different attacks, armed bandits have killed about 220 people and abducted more than 300 others in 2022 across Niger State. The executive governor of Niger state, Dr Abubakar Sani Bello made the disclosure during his meeting with President Mohammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
Bello who was in the Presidential Villa to brief Buhari on the state of insecurity attributed the attacks by terrorists to lack of access roads and the vast landmass of the state that has prevented the military and local vigilantes from protecting the local from the continuous attacks.
“In January this year, we suffered not less than 50 reported attacks and loss of lives, between January 1 – January 17. Within the same period, not less than 300 communities have been invaded by bandits,” Bello said.
The 220 persons killed include 165 civilians, 30 local security officers known as vigilantes, 25 security personnel and three Chinese nationals.
Bello however frowned at the rate and dimension in which the perpetrators are carrying out the attacks. Therefore, there is a need for collaboration and synergy between affected neighbouring states of Zamfara, Kaduna and Kebbi to come together in combating and bringing an end to the insecurity.
Looking at the efforts put together by the military men, there is hope that in no distant time the problem of insecurity will become a thing of the past in the state, Bello assured.
Bello also added that the terrorists are taking advantage of the existing cattle route to invade the communities. To make it worse, the community roads are not good enough for military vehicles to move on. This too is a big challenge to us in tackling the perpetrators.
We realized that the terrorists are taking the security officers for granted as they operate within Niger, Kebbi, Kaduna and Zamfara forest, Bello added.
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