Governor Aminu Bello Masari of Katsina State has directed Local Government Caretaker Committee Chairmen in the state to ensure that herdsmen have the freedom of movement and unfettered access to amenities and facilities without let or hindrance in their respective domains.
The Governor gave the directive in Safana Local Government yesterday, the third day of his dialogue with bandits’ commanders, as part of the engagement to end banditry, which has become a deadly recurring decimal in eight of the 34 local government areas in the state.
The eight local government areas prone to persistent deadly banditry attacks include Dandume, Sabuwa, Faskari Kankara, Safana, Danmusa, Batsari and Jibiya.
The Governor also directed that on each market day, or whenever there is movement of herdsmen with their animals, the chairmen should give stamped and signed certificate affirming ownership by the bearers, urging the Chairmen to remain the only signatory to the certificate.
The adoption of the measure follows repeated complaints made by the various leadership of the bandits of arbitrary arrests and extortion, against security operatives, Sharia court judges who allegedly demand for huge sums of money from herdsmen whenever they have their animals in tow, or have a case in court.
In a statement signed by Director General (Media), Abdu Labaran Malumfashi, the governor told the herdsmen and their women to feel free and move freely anywhere in the state in conducting their business and other activities, urging them to report to the nearest authority any security operative, civilian official or member of any voluntary organisations who demands for gratification from them on account of their ethnicity.
Governor Masari however, admonished the bandits not to see the government’s search for peace as a sign of weakness, because the government has the right, might and resources to deal decisively with any individual or group to have its way.
He said the dialogue option was adopted in order to give peace a chance, so that the innocent is not punished along with the guilty, or the guilty is freed while they innocent is punished.
He told the bandits not to see the amnesty programme as limited to Katsina State alone, but applicable to every part of the country that is subjected to banditry.
While assuring that government will redeem all the promises it has made to them, including releasing some of their elders summarily arrested, the Governor asked the bandits to reciprocate by releasing all the kidnapp victims that are in their hands.
