No Village in Kebbi Under Bandit Control – State Government

The Kebbi State Government has refuted reports that bandits are controlling any villages, holding Sharia Courts, or appointing traditional rulers in the state.

Deputy Governor Sen. Umar Abubakar-Tafida dismissed these claims during a news briefing in his office in Birnin Kebbi on Tuesday, November 12, 2024.

“There is no single village, in the whole of Kebbi State, where bandits are in-charge of Sharia courts or have appointed village heads of their choice,” he stated.

“The report is false, with no iota of truth; this is just the imagination of writers of such news. We do not have a bandit base or camp in Kebbi. These marauders infiltrated from neighboring states, and from Niger Republic to Kebbi through their informants to strike and retreat.”

Abubakar-Tafida assured that the state government has implemented targeted and effective strategies to put an end to banditry in the region.

“The delegation sent by the state government under the leadership of the Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Sen. Atiku Bagudu to meet with the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Gen. Christopher Musa has held a fruitful discussion with the military high-command.”

“This discussion was on ways to wipe out banditry and insurgency in Kebbi, Northwest and the North generally,” he said.

Abubakar-Tafida announced that a total of N92.5 million had been disbursed to the families of victims who lost their lives in the bandit attack on Friday, November 7.