Following the dwindling security situation in the Northwest zone of the country, hundreds of disturbed citizens of Zamfara State have taken to the streets to protest the development.
This is even as women and youths from Zamfara State, on Tuesday, took their protest to the headquarters of the Department of Security Services, DSS, in Abuja. They decried the plight of residents in Zamfara over heightened insecurity in the State.
The PUNCH who monitored the demonstration reported that the aggrieved persons blamed the immediate-past Governor of the State and now Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, for the heightened activities of bandits.
According to PUNCH, they claimed that the activities of the bandits were fallouts of Matawalle’s alleged romance with the bandits during his administration.
The demonstrators, who arrived in about 12 long buses at 10.15 am, were, however, restricted from accessing the premises of the security agency.
Recall that a month ago, the state chapter of the All Progressives Congress called on the Federal Government to declare a state of emergency in Zamfara Stat. This, the chapter said, is to allow the fight against banditry to succeed.
The demonstrators were seen waving placards with inscriptions like, ‘We are dying’ and ‘DSS, save us from bandits.’ They also used the occasion to urge the DSS Director General, Adeola Ajayi, to intervene in their situation.
Addressing journalists, the leader of the demonstrators, Mallam Musa Mahmud, expressed disappointment with the security situation. He wondered why President Bola Tinubu had not sacked Matawalle as minister, despite the evidence presented by Governor Dauda Lawal.
Mahmud, who is also the Chairman of the All Progressives Congress Akida Forum, pleaded that Matawalle should be probed. He insisted that the Minister should not be given a soft landing owing to his loyalty to the President.
“The issues here are not just political problems. They are matters of life and death. The economic survival and the fundamental human rights of the citizens of Zamfara State. And that should not be handled lightly.
“We want the DSS to conduct a thorough investigation to save millions of Nigerians and safeguard the integrity of the President and the intelligence community.
“The agency is in the best position to advise President Tinubu to relieve Matawalle of his position. So, that he could face an investigative panel. And to clarify his connections with dangerous individuals like Bello Tagoji, Musa Kamarawa and Ardon Zuru.
“These are not abstract concerns. Zamfara citizens have the right to live free from the constant threat of banditry and violence.
“These issues should be at the forefront of any reasonable Nigerian who means well for the country,” Mahmud said.
PUNCH stated that when contacted, Matawalle’s media aide, Ahmad Dan-Wudil, did not respond to calls put through to his line.
And by the time of this report there is no response to the allegations against his principal.
source: PUNCH
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