Masari Talks Tough After Katsina Govt Was Betrayed By Bandits

Governor Aminu Bello Masari of Katsina State has opened up on how bandits operating in the state betrayed his government by failing to honor the agreement they have signed. He therefore ruled out further negotiation or peace talks with the criminals.

Masari disclosed that the state government had signed an agreement with the bandits and they promised to repent and leave the north-western part of the country, but according to him “they could not honor the agreement, they betrayed us”.

Speaking to BBC Hausa in a live Instagram interview Wednesday, he stated that some of the bandits are from Zamfara, Kaduna and even Niger Republic.

Masari said he was the first governor to sign an agreement with bandits in 2016 and they honoured the agreement then before they betrayed the government recently.

“We choose to signed peace agreement with the bandits so as to avoid lost of life and properties but it didn’t yield a positive result. This time around we will hand it over to security personnel.

“In our effort to honor the agreement between us, we cancel all vigilantes and volunteer groups and we allow them (bandits) to continue with their normal activities in the state,” he said.

The Katsina Governor then called on the federal government to provide adequate security personnel and facilities so as to succeed in the fight against banditry in the state.