By Luminous Jannamike
Former National Secretary of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Dr Sani Abdullahi Shinkafi, has accused federal security agencies of neglecting their constitutional duty by waiting for ‘orders from Abuja’ while citizens are being killed, abducted and displaced by bandits across Zamfara State.
In a statement he personally signed, Shinkafi, who is the Executive Director of the Patriots for the Advancement of Peace and Social Development, said it was unacceptable that troops fail to act on intelligence from the Zamfara State government while bandits terrorise communities.
He cited Section 14(2)(b) of the 1999 Constitution, which states that the security and welfare of the people shall be the primary purpose of government.
“The good people of Zamfara State have been at the mercy of armed bandits who kill, wound, abduct, rape, displace indigenes from their ancestral homes, impose levies, rustle cattle and destroy properties worth billions of naira for over a decade in the state,” the ex-governorship candidate said.
Shinkafi argued that many attacks could have been prevented if security agencies worked in synergy with Governor Dauda Lawal’s administration, which has invested heavily in advanced technology such as environmental remote sensing, Geographical Information System (GIS), and Global Positioning System (GPS) to track bandits in their hideouts.
He noted that the governor had also provided 150 operational vehicles, recruited 2,000 Civilian Joint Task Force members and hunters from Borno and Yobe States, and strengthened the state’s Community Protection Guard (Assakarawa) with weapons, motorcycles and logistics to complement conventional forces.
“In spite of Governor Lawal’s unwavering commitment to end armed banditry in the state, it is curious that security agencies do not respond quickly to intelligence reports of planned attacks, nor respond promptly to crush such attacks and save lives and property. Instead, troops in particular would say they were awaiting orders from Abuja to act while hapless citizens were being killed and kidnapped for ransom,” Shinkafi said.
He recalled that the Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa, had warned troops during an address in Plateau State that they must act decisively against criminals without waiting for specific commands.
Quoting General Musa, Shinkafi said: “I do not want to hear that I was not given any command. As long as you are deployed, your task is to secure your community. Do not be afraid to take out any criminal or enemy doing any act of killing… You will be court marshalled. That I can guarantee you.”
The APC chieftain urged President Bola Tinubu and the military high command to intervene urgently, insisting that opposition politicians in Zamfara were politicising insecurity to destabilise Governor Lawal’s government.
“It is obvious that banditry in the state can end within two months if there is collaboration between the military and the state government to flush out these criminal elements. What is lacking is the political will to crush them,” he said.
Shinkafi pointed to the August 16, 2025 Kaura Namoda South State House of Assembly bye-election, where more than 7,000 security personnel, 50 armoured carriers, hundreds of vehicles and senior commanders were deployed, while nearby communities were left under siege by bandits.
“The APC Federal Government by this action showed that it prioritised capturing a State House of Assembly constituency seat over the security and welfare of the people it abandoned when bandits attacked them,” he said.
According to him, in Banga community alone, 35 villagers were slaughtered even after ransom was paid, while in Danisa Ward, a notorious kingpin imposed ₦56 million in levies before farmers could cultivate their land.
He said the situation was no different in Katsina State, where Governor Dikko Radda recently lamented that security agencies ignored his warnings of an impending bandit attack that left 50 worshippers dead and over 100 women and children kidnapped.
Calling for a review of Nigeria’s security architecture, Shinkafi stressed that insecurity must be addressed beyond partisan politics.
“Security is everybody’s business. Life has no duplicate. We must value the sanctity of human life. Let us set aside partisan politics and resolve to build a strong, united, progressive, prosperous and inclusive democratic nation,” he said.
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