BANDITRY: Vigilante activities doing more harm than good –Governor Masari

The Governor of Katsina, Aminu Masari, has regretted that the activities of local vigilante in the state was doing more harm than good in addressing attacks and killings by bandits in the state.

He said that the vigilante group, Yansakai, otherwise known as ‘volunteers’, had allegedly triggered the mass killings in the front-line Local Government Areas (LGAs) of the state by their actions.

Governor Masari, who spoke on Sunday during a visit to the temporary camp of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Dandume LGA, accused the vigilante group of making it extremely difficult for security agencies to tackle banditry and other related crimes in the state.

Explaining his claim he said, “We don’t accept, neither have we approved Yansakai, as in most cases, they are responsible for triggering the mass killings of innocent citizens.

“Yansakai can travel 30 kilometres from their place and kill a Fulani or anybody they suspect to be a bandit and when the bandits in the forest come, they attack the nearest innocent community. It has happened in Kadisau and many areas that have recorded massive killings.

Read also: Katsina gov, Masari, admits failure in protecting his domain against bandits

“It is the matter of restoring confidence but most of the villages that these victims came from are deserted now. We want to make sure that there is the presence of the military and police before they go back.”

According to the governor, vigilante groups that enjoy the support of the state government remained those that had been recognised by the law enforcement agencies.

The governor had, earlier, also visited the IDP camps in Faskari and Kadisau to commiserate with the people over the recent attacks by bandits in the area that led to the death of over 50 innocent citizens.

A total of 3,888 IDPs – mostly women and children – have been taking shelter for 42 days in Dandume after being displaced from about 27 villages in Faskari LGA.

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