BRASS INDIGENES CALL FOR ARREST OF ALL INVOLVED IN THE ASSAULT OF DC FSARS KOLA OKUNOLA

The people of Twon-Brass have called on the Acting Inspector General of Police to swiftly commence the investigation of the assault on the Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of Federal SARS, Kola Okunola, by APC thugs in Twon-Brass which occurred on Saturday 23rd February 2019, and bring the perpetrators to book. 

The leadership of the community who registered their dissatisfaction, gross displeasure and regret at this heinous act stated that the officer was not seen with, neither was he carting away with electoral materials as alleged by some media reports.

Elections were already over in Twon Brass, Brass LGA at the time the police officer, the Military officer and some Officials arrived. The Police Officer did not even leave the jetty area on his arrival where he was attacked.

The attackers are all known. They are all boys from Twon Brass, APC members and followers of former governor Timipre Sylva and Hon. Sunny Israel-Goli( AKA Adi).

The fake report of the DC carting away with electoral materials was a very shameless attempt by the former Governor Timipre Sylva and Hon. Sunny Israel-Goli( AKA Adi) in connivance with the Military to conceal their successful efforts to hijack electoral materials from Nembe enroute Yenagoa. 

In a Statement, Comrade Kemepade Victor, who observed the episode said that the DC was not with any electoral material as claimed. All they saw was scores of boys running towards the jetty. He said, Brass had been unusually peaceful until that evening. The boys who numbered about 30 attacked the police officer while the military officer watched. 

The officer was then taken to unknown destination and we later heard he was released. 

The episode is truly shameful and condemnable. The IG must speedily investigate the matter, fishnet the perpetrators and deal with them according to law.

INEC Accredited Observers Rejects 2019 Presidential Election Results Announcement

INEC ACCREDITED ORGANIZATIONS AND A COALITION OF CIVIL SOCIETY ORGANIZATIONS IN NIGERIA  REJECT THE JUST CONCLUDED PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION RESULTS IN NIGERIA.

The Independent National Electoral  Commission (INEC), as an electoral body saddled with the constitutional responsibility of conducting elections across Nigeria, after a thorough scrutiny accredited reputable  Civil Society/Non Governmental Organizations to serve as both domestic and foreign  election observers for the 2019 General Elections in Nigeria.

Our coalition has noted with dismay the unprecedented affront in the falsification of the just concluded Presidential election results in Nigeria due to massive falsification of figures during collation, abduction, intimidation and harassment of INEC staff and electorates and wide spread violence across the country.

We have evidences of varying degrees that results from different states of the Federation has been mutilated, falsified and changed to sooth the candidate of the APC, President Mohammadu Buhari.

It is our firm belief that the incumbent President Mohammadu Buhari is the greatest beneficiary of a transparent, free, fair and credible elections in Nigeria and as such should sustain same template across the country.

The current process where state election results are being doctored to sooth PMB is therefore regrettable and unacceptable.

We hereby call on the International community, the media, Foreign and Domestic Observers to urgently save the Nigerian democracy which is on transit to death.

OUR OBSERVATIONS.

* We observed that elections commenced later than the stipulated threshold of 8am across the country. There were instances of lack or unavailability of the police for escort of the ad hoc staff and sensitive materials (Form EC8A and ballot papers) to designated polling units. This basically was the cause of delay on the arrival of sensitive materials and consequently the delay in the commencement time of election nationwide.

* In line with International best practice, policemen in the polling units are NOT expected to carry firearms. But the near or complete absence of armed law enforcement agents few polls from the polling units gave room for thuggs and hoodlums to snatch ballot boxes, intimidate and molest electorates, and unleash mayhem on law abiding citizens as the case may be. Policemen at the polling units were often overwhelmed by the large number of thuggs.

* The role of the military in elections and consequent rule of engagement in elections were clearly and consistently violated. We observed the military in states like Akwa Ibom, Rivers, Imo, Cross River, Kogi, Kano, etc, order electorates, observer, some party agents out of collation centres for the sole aim of falsification of results in favour of a preferred candidate. This is an aberration of modern democratic tenets.

* In some instances in Akwa Ibom state, Rivers, Imo, Cross River, Kogi, Kano, etc,the law enforcement agent were observed fire sporadically into the air and snatching ballot boxes away themselves.

* Again, in the full glare of the Military and the I.G.P. squad of the Nigerian police, hoodlums loyal to Senator Akpabio assaulted  foreign and domestic observers in Ukana, Essien Udium LGA of Akwa Ibom state, seizing and destroying their Tabs, phones and other personal effects. Some of the victims are still in the hospital receiving urgent medical attention as at the time of this briefing.

* The Smart Card Reader (SCR) were not used in several polling units across the country. This was as a result of threat to life by thuggs and hoodlums engaged by some desperate politicians. Sadly, most of the results which emanated from a process in clear violation of the provisions of the Electoral Act, 2010 as Amended were collated, declared and a winner emerged.

* We have also observed the increase in the number of deaths during the 2019 General Elections as against the number of deaths in 2015 General elections. A total of 12 Nigerians lost their lives during the 2015 General Elections. These 12 persons died as a result of Boko Haram attack. In 2019 Presidential and National Assembly Elections, 30 Nigerians were murdered in cold blood on election day as a result of election related violence. This we consider as saddening and alarming in a context supposedly civil and democratic.

The original election result is hereby annexed for your perusal.  

It seems to us that Nigeria is transiting backwards to the dark ages of a near anarchy situation.

SUMMARY

We wish to state categorically clear that the lacuna and shortcomings observed in the 2019 General Election is as a result of persistent aberration consequent to the inability of law enforcement agencies to comply with the necessary electoral reforms in line with International Standards, rule of engagement, the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (1999 as Amended), and the provisions of the Electoral Act 2010 as Amended.

This re occurring decimal has become malignant in the performance index of the Law enforcement agencies in Nigeria en route free, fair, transparent and credible elections in Nigeria.

The Presidential results are hereby rejected in the interest of equity and fairness.

Thank you.

Yunusa Ibrahim                                                    Umuren Esieme

for Accredited observer Groups for Civil Society Organizations

Akpabio Exposes Buhari, Reveals Shocking Details

A video where the National Coordinator, Presidential Support Committee, Senator Godswill Akpabio revealed shocking details about President Muhammadu Buhari has emerged online.

In the short throwback video, Akpabio revealed how President Buhari paid a huge amount of money to stop an underground train project in Lagos State.

He equally vowed not to dump the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, to APC as he said that the broom in the party’s logo was a symbol of slavery.

Hear him:

“Let me tell you something about Buhari. That underground train was supposed to be constructed in Lagos. It was done by the government of Jakande and they had a plot that if the contract was canceled, they must pay the full amount to the construction company. ”

When Buhari took over, he said he can’t live to see an underground train in western Nigeria. He canceled the project and went ahead to pay the full amount to the foreign company and said take the money but don’t construct it “.

Akpabio equally revealed that Buhari hates the South and can never build roads or Seaport in Akwa Ibom.

“Today we are talking about Seaport and dualization of roads from Aba all the way to Orun, all those things will not happen because the man will not recognize you. ”

” If he can do that to majority tribe, like the Yorubas, the man will not recognize you. Even the symbol on the party’s logo should make you to vomit. Akwa Ibom children were used as house boys with brooms and somebody will go to Lagos and bring brooms, will you accept brooms?”. He asked the crowd and they shouted “no sir!!”.

Surprisingly, Senator Akpabio in August 2018, went back to his vomit and picked up the “symbol of slavery”, in order to escape prosecution over alleged multi billion naira fraud case against him.

Stakeholders Want Police To Investigate Compromised INEC Officials Working With Obasanjo, PDP To Rig Polls

A group of stakeholders under the auspices of Nationalists Front for Nigeria have come together to call on the Independent National Electoral Commission and the Police to investigate Staff of the Commission who compromised the conduct of the now postponed elections.

Alhaji Abubakar B Tsav leading other statesmen, compromising former diplomats, clergy etc held that former President Obasanjo and some persons in INEC are in a conspiracy to scuttle the election with a pre-determined outcome in line with the ex-President’s character and posture.

Addressing a world press conference on Monday, Tsav said those involved in the shady deal to snuggle in PDP into power through backdoor must be brought to book.

His text below.

In recent hours, events that were previously taken in isolation of each other have now been confirmed to not only be interconnected but they are also pieces in one big puzzle, a grand plan to force regime change on Nigeria while masking the crime as part of the democratic process, viz the general election that has now been postponed by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). Because most Nigerians had innocently taken events in isolation, the natural reaction has been one of condemnation of INEC, with several persons and groups accusing the electoral body of working for whatever political party they suspect. We shall come to heaping our criticism on INEC but not before we attempt to alert Nigerians to the real dangers facing them as a people.

Whatever shortcoming has been observed with INEC, its state of readiness, its troubled election logistics and battle with credibility crisis amongst others are nothing but symptoms. It is like an individual having a high fever, pale skin tone, vomiting and a host of other manifestations; the manifestations themselves are not the ailment they are merely symptoms of a deeper infection or life threatening organ damage that the body is dealing with. All efforts can be put into managing or treating the symptoms but they will amount to nought if the root causes of the problems are not addressed. Painfully, INEC is today a microcosm of Nigeria, a country grappling with contrived problems that are nowhere in the region of natural.

It is on record that the period preceding elections, prior to the postponement, witnessed unprecedented spike in the number of Boko Haram attacks that the Nigerian Army repeatedly repelled, often inflicting heavy casualty on the insurgents. In the security circle, intelligence report confirmed that these attacks were intended to produce a situation when it would become glaring that it was impossible to conduct elections.

The objective was such that in the absence of elections there would be widespread uprisings and protests that would have eventually produced an interim government. The repeated defeat of the terrorists made the opposition, in this case the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), to be faced with the prospect of going into an election it is guaranteed to lose to the incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari, who is seeking re-election on the platform of his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Recall that prior to this, a former president, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, cobbled together several alliances and coalitions that failed woefully like every other thing he has ever laid hands on. Even though Chief Obasanjo had in the past invoked God’s wrath on himself if he ever returns to the PDP (he tore his membership card to seal the curse) he has since fully returned to the PDP and is now its most popular gladiator, save the party’s presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar. Obasanjo had made it appear as if certain clerics captured in photo op with him and Atiku were instrumental to brokering peace between him and his former deputy but events have proven otherwise. What they did in Otta on the day they purportedly made peace was to further perfect their scheme against democracy in Nigeria. As we speak, the denomination lead by one of the clerics at that meeting continues to abuse and desecrate the name of God by converting sermons into political campaigns.

In the aftermath of that meeting, Chief Obasanjo initiated contact with his neocon masters. The objective of that contact was to handpick the enforcers that were sent to Nigeria as election observers. Tragically, this is the one area where INEC got it wrong. They accredited these international enforcers without adequate background checks. What has now happened is that a lot of them from western country are in reality in the country to manipulate the presidential election in favour of Atiku Abubakar and the PDP.

The compromised and pre-determined position of these so called observers has been confirmed by several actions they have taken. Instead of working as independent countries, they coordinate to issue statements that are solely intended to erode the public perception INEC, criminalize the federal government and to canonize Atiku Abubakar as a president in waiting even when elections have not held. They have also taken on a belligerent attitude, in which they dictate what they want to happen and expect INEC to frog-march to their tune. All these abhorrent behaviours on the part of the foreign intruders were encouraged by Atiku and his party who wrote several letters upon which they are basing the legitimacy of their interference. Of course they continue to cite the invitation that INEC, because of the naivety of its Chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, extended to them to monitor the elections.

This naivety of Professor Yakubu has hurt the country in no small measure. Right under his nose staff of the Commission were compromised by the opposition to the extent that even the final list of candidates were presented for his signature only after Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, Chief Obasanjo and Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike have approved it. The compromise of INEC was so bad that results have been written in favour of the PDP before the Election Day while sensitive election materials were delivered to PDP chieftains in several areas hence the failure of the materials to be delivered to the right destinations and officials at a few hours to the elections. The logistics failure that prompted the postponement was therefore contrived by these people and not a natural occurrence.

The evil that was planned against Nigeria by Chief Obasanjo and his protégés – Atku, Wike and others is beyond imagination. It was as if he has sensed that Nigerians will vote in a way that will disgrace him with his failed alliances and lying letter so he decided the only way to save face is to manipulate the elections by compromising the umpire. A last minute realization of the crimes that have been committed in INEC is what jolted its Chairman out of his lethargy to postpone the polls in the hope that remedial actions can still be taken to reverse the damage that the PDP, Obasanjo and Atiku have done to its credibility.

Before now, there have been several calls on these men to desist from their acts that are capable of plunging the country into crisis but it is now apparent that they are not amenable to reason. Instead of retracing their steps they have approached their western allies to mount undue pressure on INEC while unfairly accusing the government of the country. They are activating their international enforcers to declare the elections as fraudulent while ignoring the capacity of this irresponsible move to cause widespread unrest. The media is also replete with fake news they are pushing to the effect that the elections would be rigged by the ruling party while in reality they, the PDP, are the ones that are desperate to win in the Obasanjo do or die style.

We call on Nigerians to shift from their indifference to become more assertive in declaring the kind of country they want, a country that faces its challenges headlong under a patriotic leaders or a colony governed by the appointee(s) of western countries. This is why citizens must rise up to the challenge of subduing unpatriotic, corrupt and selfish past political office holders if they must save Nigeria from collapse. If the progress being made under President Buhari must be reversed for any reason then it must be a decision that Nigerians make with their votes that must be cast without manipulation. Citizens should exercise their right to insist that the progress and national development under a patriotic nationalist like President Buhari is a must.

Our demand to Professor Yakubu and INEC as an institution is simple. The Commission must identify, sack and hand over its compromised staff to the police for prosecution before proceeding with the election. A failure to do this would imply that INEC has no intention of doing the right thing which would greatly undermine its credibility like the western coalition and the opposition has been trying to do. Where INEC fails to yield those indicted for prosecution, we encourage the police to arrest them before the election.

We remind the foreign observers that have been going beyond the terms of their accreditation to retrace their steps. A failure to retrace their steps will guarantee some sort of retribution in the short term and they can be guaranteed that a blend of the internet and the social media will make it possible for aggrieved parties to meddle in their own internal affairs in damaging ways. It is expected that they will not have cause to lament should matters come to that.

We warn that the postponement of the election has not discouraged these mischief makers. They will exploit their other fall back options as they continue to try to hijack power without winning election, which would cause crisis in the country. Nigerians and the Federal Government must therefore not let down their guards as the danger has not passed but has only retreated to mutate into something more evil than its previous option.

CJN: Nigerians Storm Streets Of New York

...... Urge United States, United Nations to Back Buhari

Barely 24 hours after some concerned Nigerians trooped out en mass in the United Kingdom to support President Muhammadu Buhari’s anti-corruption fight, their counterparts in the United States of America have followed suit.

These Nigerians, under the auspices of Restore Nigeria Coalition (RNC) were spotted in the streets of Washington, chanting ‘Sai Baba' as they urged the Donald Trump-led government and the United Nations to support President Buhari in flushing out corruption.

Cosmas Collins, President of RNS, speaking on behalf of the group, believes Nigeria has made tremendous progress in the anti-corruption fight as witnessed in the case of embattled Chief Justice Walter Onnoghen.

“They are sufficing to note that since 2015, the present administration has initiated measures aimed at reducing corrupt practices in the conduct of government business at all tiers of governance. This effort has yielded positive results to the admiration of the bulk of Nigerians and the consternation of a select few that have benefited from the rot in the system,” he said.

“Undeterred, the government of President Muhammadu Buhari has carried on with enthusiasm and a determination to see that structural defects are fixed to curb the rot in the system for the betterment of Nigeria as a country.

“You may also wish to note that the bane of underdevelopment in Nigeria is as a result of the lackadaisical attitude of previous governments in the fight against corruption that has resulted in the wanton disregard for accountability and transparency in the conduct of government businesses and by extension governance in Nigeria.

“Since 2015 when the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari took over the affairs of the state in Nigeria, Nigeria has recorded tremendous progress in governance evident in the dividends of democracy trickling down the ladder.

“However, the present administration has encountered numerous challenges from individuals and organisations that have subverted the system through nefarious ways and means all in the quest to portray the Muhammadu Buhari administration in poor light in an attempt to pitch the populace against the government to fulfil their personal agenda of causing unrest and disaffection in the country.

“The recent case of the suspended Chief Justice of Nigeria, Walter Onnoghen who violated the law in declaring his assets as stipulated by the law has further emphasized the level of rot in the system.

“A particular segment of the Nigerian society has cried wolf where none exist and painted a picture of political persecution, forgetting that Nigeria was on the brinks of imminent collapse due the activities of a few that have benefitted from the rot in the system. 

“We are through this medium soliciting for assistance from the United States and United Nation in the war against corruption in Nigeria as initiated by the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari in recent times.

“A vivid example can be seen in the instance where the Chief Judicial Official in Nigeria, either by omission or commission failed to declare a part of his assets running into millions of dollars.

“The Chief Justice of Nigeria as the number one judicial officer in the country for inexplicable reasons did not declare a part of his assets before the Code of Conduct Bureau in Nigeria. The CJN cited “forgetfulness and mistake” as the reasons for the non-declaration.

“The non-declared items are bank accounts with balances that runs into millions of pounds sterling and dollars.  This is too much to be right in our considered opinion. As the number one judicial officer in the country, it is wholly untenable for such an excuse, unless for deliberate reasons.”

Report: How The Buhari Administration Gained Control Of The Boko Haram Phenomena Since 2015

The sustained efforts of the Armed Forces of Nigeria and as well as the political will exhibited by the President Muhammadu Buhari upon the assumption of office in 2015 was primarily responsible for the inroads the Nigeria military attained in the fight against Boko Haram in Nigeria. This was contained in a report by the Centre for International and Strategic Studies (CISS) titled “The Battle Against Terrorism in Nigeria 2013-2018) which was released by CISS in December as part of its annual research work on critical sectors in Nigeria. 

The report which was signed by Professor Ahmed Danfulani, stated that the CISS undertook the research with a view to dissecting the trend of insurgency in Nigeria, its dynamics and sophistication of its operations and how the apparent invincibility of the sect have raised fundamental questions not only about military roles on national security but also on governance issues as well as on Nigeria’s corporate existence. 

The report revealed that, in spite of the setbacks the Nigeria Military had experienced in the battlefield, the Nigeria Army had made a significant breakthrough in breaking the ranks of Boko Haram fighters from 2015 with the advent of the Muhammadu Buhari Administration. 

The report stated that “The Buhari led administration has shown tremendous political will towards protecting lives and properties in Nigeria. The Nigerian Military has engaged the Boko Haram Terrorists in a battle for the soul of Nigeria. In the process, phenomenal successes have been recorded as indicated in the Global Terrorism Index.  It is, therefore, sufficing to state that all the remarkable successes recorded by the Nigerian Army under Lt Gen TY Buratai occurred between 2015 to date.” 

The five themed report captures the emergence, activities, mode of operation, ideology and the international dimension of Boko Haram. It also focused on the counter-insurgency attempts of the Nigerian military under former President Goodluck Jonathan and President Muhammadu Buhari. Emphasis was on Civil-Military relations in Nigerians North East, as well as the response of Buhari led administration in curtailing the Boko Hara threat. 

“The state’s response to Boko Haram since 2009 has been characterized by extreme complexity, especially in regards to the relationship between federal, state, and local government levels, and the inevitable institutional tensions between security services – military, police, the State Security Service (SSS), and other governmental agencies – and civil society groups including traditional and religious institutions.” 

“The turning point of the Boko Haram insurgency occurred in 2009 after a four-day battle between Nigerian security forces and Boko Haram members in Bauchi, Kano, Yobe, and Borno state, all in northern Nigeria. The confrontation led to the death of over 800 suspected Boko Haram members including its leader Mohammed Yusuf and other high profile supporters of the sect including Alhaji Buji Foi, a former commissioner in Borno State, and Baba Fugu Mohammed, the 72-year-old father-in-law of Yusuf.” 

As regards government response to the Boko Haram threat under President Muhammadu Buhari, the report stated that “among his earliest acts in office was to replace the heads of the army, navy, and air force. The new army chief and the commanding officer in charge of operations against Boko Haram both hail from northern Nigeria, and by many accounts they have taken a more proactive approach than their predecessors toward countering the group. For example, they moved the army’s operational headquarters from Abuja to Maiduguri and had deployed more long-range patrols in the region. Experts suggest that the army is now conducting more strategically-focused operations, such as those that target Boko Haram’s logistics routes.” 

According to the report, morale within the army has improved under the new leadership, and suitable conditions for the safe return of the more than two million people displaced by Boko Haram’s violence has been ongoing since 2015. 

“the Muhammadu Buhari administration has achieved much when pitched in direct comparison with the efforts of the former regime to manage the insecurity menace in the North Eastern region of the country where the insurgency has thrived over the years.”

This is however in contrast to the defense and foreign affairs report published by the International Strategic Studies Association. The report blames “corruption among higher-ups in the military high command for the faltering war against Boko Haram, and also that the Nigerian government had completely and comprehensively lost control of the engagement with Boko Haram and could show no instance when the government presently had tactical, theatre, strategic, or information dominance of any aspect of the conflict.” 

However, the CISS report counters the position of the ISIS report, which appeared hastily put together due to some factual inaccuracies and illogical conclusions noticed in its analysis. This was the case as it is evident that the present government had responded to the overwhelming activities of insurgency through soliciting international assistance to get rid of the domestic terrorism posed by the sect. 

“President Buhari also sought for greater support from other friendly nations to combat the challenges posed by the sect and also calling for the support of developed countries to assist in the area of intelligence gathering on the sect’s movements, training and sources of arms and ammunition.” 

The CISS report further stated that President Muhammadu Buhari’s agenda against corruption has ultimately resulted in more transparency and accountability in the persecution of the War against the Boko Haram Insurgency. 

“The administration started by replacing the upper echelon of the military, investigated the misappropriation of security funds by 300 companies, military officers and security personnel and even individuals connected to corrupt practices during the former administration. This “crackdown” encouraged the US to offer military aid to the country amid reluctance due to fears of human right abuses and widespread mismanagement of the Jonathan administration. 

“In a bid to strengthen trust and transparency in executing the War against terrorism between the military and the general public, the command center of Operation Lafiya Dole conducts a media briefing on the progress and setbacks of the operation.” 

A top security officer who pleaded anonymity stated that ISIS report might have been a sponsored work done by some sympathizers of the terrorist network to smear the image of President Muhammadu Buhari and by extension the service chief so it can lose the international appeal it has garnered since 2015. 

“Interestingly, we know where the report emanated from.  For a start, the supposed organization is not based in Nigeria and could not have been privy to the details it claimed in its report. And you cannot use days to research and produce a report, as evident in the report that was supposedly released in 28th December and was quoting an incident that happened the previous day, 27th of December” the source stated. 

Another top military source who didn’t want his name in print gave credence to the report by The Centre for International and Strategic Studies (CISS). He stated that though there are a few noticeable lapses, in the long run, the report conveyed facts in a most professional manner worthy of commendation.

Coalition Ask Nigerians To Hold Mansur Dan Ali And The Presidency Responsible For Killings In Zamfara State

The Coalition of Democratic Watchdogs of Nigeria has called on Nigerians to hold the Minister of Defence, Mansur Dan Ali and the Presidency, especially President Buhari, responsible for the continuing killings in Zamfara State.

While addressing the media on Wednesday in Abuja, Comrade Yunusa Idris said that since the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria is unambiguous and clear that the primary responsibility of Government is to protect lives and property of her citizens, President Mohammadu Buhari as President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces should be reminded that the security apparatus of the Nigerian state is commanded by him and not the Local Government Chairmen or the Governors as the case may be.

Below is the full text of the press briefing:

A PRESS BRIEFING BY THE COALITION OF DEMOCRATIC WATCHDOGS OF NIGERIA ON THE WANTOM AND CONTINUING KILLINGS IN ZAMFARA STATE

Good afternoon Gentlemen of the Press.

On Wednesday 26th December, 2018, suspected bandits struck yet again in Birnin Magaji Local Government Area of Zamfara State, killing scores of Nigerians who were murdered in cold blood in their farms while harvesting sweet potatoes. This murder is one too many of such series of murder in Zamfara State especially when the government is encouraging Nigerians to invest in Agriculture. Now, the farms are far from being safe.

The bandits made a return in the evening of Wednesday, 2018 and ransacked some villages around, unmolested and unperturbed. Most of the villages surrounding Birnin Magaji Local Government Area such as Ballaka, Tsalle, Gidan Kare, Katsinawa, Garin Boka and Garin Kaka are deserted due to repeated attacks by the bandits. Persons residing in such villages are now seeking refuge at the council headquarters and some other places.

Some of the LGAs mostly affected by armed bandits and cattle rustlers in Zamfara state includes; Tsafe, Zurmi, Shankafi, Maradun, Maru and Birnin Magaji Local Government Areas.

Ironically, the Minister of Defence, Mansur Dan Ali is from Birnin Magaji, One of the areas mostly ravaged by these unending attacks.

Now, the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria is unambiguous and clear that the primary responsibility of Government is to protect lives and property of her citizens.

We may wish to ask what could be happening in the case of Nigerian citizens resident in Zamfara State?

For how long would this level of unprecedented carnage continue unabated?

Mr. Mansur Dan Ali, who is the current Minister of Defence needs to provide answers to these unending killings in Zamfara state.

The Presidency must tell Nigerians why these mindless killings cannot be stopped and perpetrators made to face the full wrath of the law. This is no time for blame game as Nigerians are murdered in scores daily. Nigerians therefore require answers. Quick one at that.

Nigerians Minister of Interior, Rtd Lt-Gen Abdulrahman Bello Dambazau needs to explain why the continuing killings in Zamfara state.

President Mohammadu Buhari as President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces is by this medium reminded that the security apparatus of the Nigerian state is commanded by him and not the Local Government Chairmen or the Governors as the case may be. The 2015 election victory of President Buhari was also premised on security. But very saddening, this security has consistently eluded the average Nigerian citizen.

As patriotic Nigerian citizens, the Coalition of Democratic Watchdogs of Nigeria therefore demand for answers to these very germane and pertinent questions as our right in not more than a fortnight of this press briefing. This is consequent to our mandate as Civil Society Organizations in furtherance to the sanctity of human life en route an enduring democratic ethos of the Nigerian state.

Thank you.

Comrade Yunusa Idris,

For the Coalition.