Following the killing of 63 volunteer vigilante members in Kebbi State by bandits Sunday evening, President Muhammadu Buhari has called on the security forces to be more proactive in preventing attacks.
Banditry has disrupted the lives of thousands of people in North-west states of Zamfara, Katsina, Sokoto, Kaduna and Kebbi and Niger in the North-central.
Thousands of people were killed and hundreds of thousands of others displaced. Cattle and other domestic animals are rustled daily by the bandits who also bar farmers and traders from accessing their farms and local markets.
It was reported how the bandits ambushed volunteer vigilante members in Sakaba local government area of Kebbi State, killing at least 63 of them.
The vigilantes were from five communities of Takita, Magajiya, Rafin Zuru, Dabai and Sanci.
It’s sad – Buhari
In a statement signed by a presidential media aide, Garba Shehu, Mr Buhari described the killing as “brutal murder.”
The statement quoted the president thus, “this egregious level of criminality is shocking and I want to assure Nigerians that I will do all it takes to tackle this monster decisively.”
“My greatest preoccupation is the threat to life posed by these murderous gangs and remorseless outlaws who have no slightest regard for the sanctity of life.
“While extending my sympathy to the families of the victims of this savagery, let me use this opportunity to also call on our security forces to be more proactive and redouble their efforts in order to frustrate the operational plans of the terrorists before they even launch attacks,” the President added.
