We live in fear,’ – Zamfara residents cry out over bandits attacks

,Some residents of Gusau have said they are living in fear due to the insecurity bedeviling Zamfara as bandits have been attacking and abducting persons not only in the rural communities but also in the state capital.

Bandits in the North-Western state have rendered over 600,000 persons homeless and over 25,000 children as orphans.

There are eight official Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camps in the state while some displaced persons are finding temporary shelter in Primary schools, others are staying with their relatives’ residents at some safer communities and Gusau.

Speaking with Channels Television on Tuesday, a Gusau resident, Hafizu Salisu decried the incessant attacks on communities in the area.

“Honestly, we are living in fear in Gusau because of the activities of bandits in the State. We used to hear the bandits have been attacking rural communities, abducting innocent persons but even in Gusau metropolis, the bandits have been coming to abduct people and demand ransom and these ransoms are paid before they free their victims. We are always living in fear within Gusau metropolis,” he said.

“It has been long that I went to Zurmi where my mother is from due to the alarming banditry activities in the area. My grandfather’s residence in Zurmi serves as an Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camp.

“Those whose bandits have been sacked in their communities usually run to the residence to stay. If one cannot sleep with his or her two eyes close and move in the daytime freely, it is not well.”

Another resident of Tsafe Local Government Area of Zamfara State, Aminu Kucheri, said he was forced to abandon his home, business due to the incessant bandit attack on his community.

Kucheri noted that his nephew and uncle were abducted by the armed bandits in the community and the abductors demanded a ransom of N3 million.

But the Zamfara State Police Command says it is committed to fighting banditry and other criminal elements in the state.

Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Muhammed Shehu said there are a massive deployment of security operatives in communities that are prone to bandits’ attacks and other strategic locations

He noted that the police operatives, in collaboration with other security agencies, are working tirelessly to ensure residents across the state sleep with their two eyes closed.