By Laleye Dipo
The senator representing Niger East senatorial district of Niger State, Alhaji Sani Musa, yesterday said not less than two people have been killed and 30 others abducted in series of bandit attacks in the senatorial zone in the last one week.
Musa also stated that about 5,000 people have been rendered homeless as a result of the incidents during the period.
The senator gave the statistics in a statement in which he chronicled the incidents and its negative impact on the people in his district, which was made available to journalists in Minna, the state capital.
“In one week, armed men in their hundreds have unleashed mayhem on innocent citizens in their peaceful villages, forcing them to evacuate their homes into homelessness,” Musa said in the statement titled: ‘Niger Security: One Week of Sleeplessness’.
The federal lawmaker recalled that in one of such attacks, “armed men numbering over 50 were reported to have stormed, at separate times, Garin Gabbas and Yakila communities in Rafi Local Government Area, where they abducted the District Head of Gunna, Ibrahim Abdulhameed; the youth leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and two other persons.”
In addition, he said on the same day, “Chukuba and Kuchi communities in Shiroro LGA were attacked by bandits, in which a Christian cleric, Reverend Jeremiah Ibrahim, and a man thought to be a vigilante security officer were killed, while at least eight persons were kidnapped.
“In fact, the last one week could be described as hell on earth for the people of Niger East senatorial district who can no longer sleep both in the day and night for fear of the unknown. They have been rendered helpless even as they continue to starve due to the destruction of their property and inability to engage in what they know how to do best, which is farming.
“Enough of this bloodletting and carnage! The lives of innocent citizens cannot continue to be sacrificed on the altar of blood-thirsty vampires who are bent on destroying the peace of our land.”
He, therefore, reiterated his call for a lasting solution to be proffered to the security problem in “Niger State and indeed the larger northern region of the country
“I once again lend my voice to the voices of my distinguished colleagues in the Senate and honourable members of the House of Representatives as well as other meaningful Nigerians to call for the revamp of the security architecture in the country. The president should not hesitate to ensure that this is done, and indeed now.”
Musa, however, commend the “gallantry of the men and officers of security agencies for their zeal towards rooting out those bad elements that have infiltrated our communities, and urged them to continue to do their best.”
