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Over 200 cattle rustled
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Joint security task force camp set ablaze
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It is a barbaric act, says government
From John Adams, Minna
Hell was let loose across Niger State communities on Tuesday, May 27, when armed bandits, numbering well over 100, raided no fewer than three communities in Munya Local Government Area, killing scores of villagers and rustling over 200 cattle.
The communities invaded in the latest onslaught by the bandits include Zagzaga, Chibani, and Kuchi, all in Munya Local Government Area.
An unspecified number of villagers, including women, were killed in the attack as the gunmen moved from one community to another without resistance.
Houses were burnt and foodstuffs looted by the gunmen, who operated between 4:00 pm and 7:00 pm as some villagers scrambled for safety.
According to our source, one of the bandits died in Kuchi, and nobody knows the cause of his death. The body was abandoned by his colleagues and was still lying in the bush at the time of filing this report.
A camp belonging to the Joint Security Taskforce was set ablaze in Kuchi community by the rampaging gunmen.
Members of the Joint Security Taskforce abandoned the camp and took to their heels when they were informed of the number of the bandits.
Our source stated further that the bandits had assembled at Kusasu community in Shiroro Local Government Area, a border community with Munya Local Government, before the attack, and a top government official was informed of their movement.
“We raised the alarm through one of our contacts in Minna to help us inform the authorities of the movement of the bandits, but nothing was done. The villagers saw them moving and assembled in Kusasu before the attack.
“They were there in the bush for over five hours before carrying out the attacks; the people saw them, but they were many in number and were riding on motorcycles,” our source said.
All attempts to get the Chairman of Munya Local Government, Hon. Aminu Najume, to confirm the attack could not yield any result as all his mobile lines were switched off.
However, the Commissioner for Homeland Security, Maj-General Bello Abdullahi Mohammed (rtd), said he was yet to receive the report of the attack but admitted that there was an incident of bandit attack in the area.
Meanwhile, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Communication, Media and Strategy, Hon. Jonathan Vatsa, condemned the attack, describing it as “barbaric, wicked and inhuman.”
He expressed regret that despite the efforts of the government to address the challenge of insecurity in parts of the state, “these enemies of the people have continued to carry out relentless attacks on innocent villagers.”
Vatsa assured that the government will not relent until the war against all forms of security challenges is addressed to pave the way for meaningful development, stressing that the activities of local informants have frustrated all efforts of the government in bringing the situation under control.