Minister Of Defence Blames ‘Traditional Leaders’ For Violence In North

By Samuel Ogundipe

The Minister of Defence, Mansur Dan Ali, on
Tuesday said fresh intelligence had exposed the complicity of some
“highly-placed traditional rulers” in the ongoing killings of Nigerians
across the northern parts of the country.

Deadly attacks
blamed on “bandits” have increased in north west states of Zamfara,
Sokoto, and Katsina, with hundreds killed in recent months.

In the north east, attacks by the insurgent group Boko Haram have continued, affecting mostly Borno, Yobe and Adamawa.

The
widespread killings by rampaging armed bandits had prompted a surge in
military and police deployment in those states, with President Muhammadu
Buhari promising an escalation of security response if required.

The
government on Sunday ordered the immediate stoppage of artisanal mining
in Zamfara saying it had confirmed the attacks had links to illegal
exploration of solid minerals in the area.

Mr Dan Ali in a
Tuesday morning statement to PREMIUM TIMES said unnamed but high-profile
traditional leaders had been identified as culpable in the violence,
and vowed that they would not be sparred.

Mr Dan Ali said locals,
especially in Sokoto, Katsina, Zamfara and other parts of northern
Nigeria ravaged by faceless gunmen, should “rise in unison to support
all government’s efforts” aimed at addressing the crisis, especially
because soldiers and other elements in the armed forces cannot combat it
alone.

“It is instructive to mention here that insurgency and
terrorism are global phenomena that cannot be addressed through military
actions only,” Mr Dan Ali said.

“However, in spite of the
concerted efforts of the Armed Forces and other security some
unpatriotic persons including highly placed traditional rulers in the
areas were identified as helping the bandits with intelligence to
perpetuate their nefarious actions or to compromise military
operations,” the minister said.

Mr Dan Ali did mention names of traditional leaders suspected to be fueling the violence, or whether any of them had been arrested.

The minister also said the suspension of mining across Zamfara was amongst the key decisions the administration believed were key to returning normalcy to the region.

Source:- Premiumtimesng