The Gbegnu Boknu Yakwo Association a Pan- Gbagyi Socio-Cultural Organization in Niger State has called on the Niger State Governments to stop playing lip service to the security of the people of Niger East senatorial zone who are under banditry attacks.
While lamenting the constant attacks unleashed by armed bandits in the area, the group alleged that the state government appeared not perturbed by the situation as it was not tackling it.
Condemning the attacks during a press briefing in Minna, the Association’s President, Comrade Danjuma S. Paiko said the bandits have sacked thousands of villagers in the zone from their ancestral homes and rendered them homeless.
He lamented that due the series of activities of the bandits, the people ran away and are currently taking refuge at various Internally Displaced Persons ( IDPs) camps in Kuta, Shiroro local government and Bosso, a suburb of Minna, the state capital, among others.
Noting the need for governments at all levels to rise up to the challenge and defend the people, he said, ” the villagers are now hopeless, wailing every day because their ancestral homes have been taken over by the bandits.”
“The situation calls for serious concern and the Niger State government should stop paying lip service to the security of the zone. It is pertinent to note that the efforts of the government in finding solutions to these challenges tend not to yield any positive result as the nefarious acts have continued unabated”.
“And, therefore, there is a need for government and security agencies to be more proactive and sensitive towards the plight of these people by putting in place more strategies in finding a lasting solution to the calamity that has robbed the people of their freedom.”
The president of the association, however, maintained that despite the attacks, members will continue to remain calm and peaceful
”Our local security group will continue to do the needful when and where necessary in defence of our fatherland”