From Paul Orude Bauchi
Bandits have killed nine members of a vigilance group, popularly known as “Yan Ba Beli”, in a forest in Gamji village of Ningi Local Government Area of Bauchi State.
The vigilance members were reportedly killed while they were searching for bandits who had been terrorising communities in the area.
Bandits had, in recent times, been terrorising residents in parts of the state with Governor Bala Mohammed revealing his intention to recruit 20,000 youths to serve as watch dogs against their onslaught as one measure.
Recently, governor Mohammed commended vigilance members of the Lere community in Tafawa Balewa Local Government Area for killing 60 bandits and rescuing 29 victims.
He donated the sum of N10 million and motorcycles to the vigilance members in Lere to fight the bandits and promised to boost joint efforts by the police and other security agencies, including local vigilantes and hunters to defeat bandits.
He lamented the complacence of the federal government to address the activities of bandits in the state despite the efforts of his administration and security agencies to prevent their incursion, warning that the combined efforts of the governors of the North West subregion to root bandits was making Bauchi State a haven for fleeing bandits.
A source said the bandits laid an ambush and attacked the local vigilance group members and killed nine of them, while some others sustained various degrees of injuries. The source, a member of a local vigilance group in the area, told journalists in confidence that the incident happened late Sunday evening, when the Yan Ba Beli were climbing the rocks around Gamji village, in search of the bandits harbouring in the forest, with the intention of killing them.
He said the bandits mounted a well coordinated ambush for them in the forest which they fell into. He further said as soon as they veered into the ambush, the bandits opened fire with superior weapons and overpowered the Yan Ba Beli, killing nine of them instantly and injuring others. The source said the bodies of the nine vigilantes were recovered on Monday and buried the same day at the scene of the incident, according to Islamic rites.
The Caretaker Chairman of Ningi LGA, Ibrahim Mato, confirmed the killing of the vigilance members.
Mato condemned the killing and assured that the government will continue to do everything possible to protect innocent lives and properties in the area.
The Bauchi State Police Command was yet to give an official statement on the sad incident at the time of filing this report.