Matawalle: Nigeria not a banana country — we’ll flush out bandits from north-west

Bello Matawalle, the minister of state for defence, says bandits operating in the north-west region will be flushed out.

Matawalle, on Tuesday, led security chiefs, including Christopher Musa, the chief of defence staff (CDS), to Sokoto as part of efforts to rid the region of bandits.

The minister told journalists that he and the security chiefs were in the state at President Bola Tinubu’s directive.

He said the president ordered them to relocate to Sokoto to assess the security situation and “flush out bandits” from the north-west region.

“We are here as directed by Mr. President, who called us from China and gave us a marching order that we should relocate to Sokoto to review our operation here and to ensure the people of this region sleep with their two eyes closed,” he said.

“The president is worried about what is happening in the north-west region. So, he called me and the chief of defence staff and directed us to leave whatever we were doing in Abuja and come to Sokoto and supervise the operation of our troops.

“Nigeria is not a banana country. It’s a country governed by a constitution under a democratically elected president who wants to leave a good legacy.

“The president carefully selected northerners and appointed them into key positions. Look at me, I am from Zamfara state, and the chief of defence is from Kaduna state.

“The minister of defence, Badaru, is from Jigawa state; the national security adviser is from Adamawa state while the minister of state for police affairs is also from the north.

“So, he carefully selected us because he knows our problem is insecurity. So, we are here to flush out those bandits that have been terrorising our region.”

The minister urged the troops to remain dedicated to the fight against banditry, adding that all necessary support will be provided.

Recently, bandits operating in the state abducted Isa Bawa, the Emir of Gobir, in the Gatawa area of Sokoto.

The Emir was killed after three weeks in captivity and the failure to pay the ransom demanded for his release.