Nation
FG’s secret negotiations with bandits spark controversy
Adebayo Obajemu
When Dauda Lawal, Zamfara State governor raised an alarm that the Tinubu administration had opened backdoor, secret negotiations with the rampaging bandits operating in the North West and North Central parts of the country, Nigerians were shocked.
The shock might have arisen, as a result of reflective hindsight of the futility of such negotiations, given past history of bandits’ not abiding by terms of agreements. The second reason for the apparent shock might have been Nigerians’ perception of the new administration, as decisive, strong, and proactive, and thus able to confront the bandits and put them where they belong.
Early last week, Gov. Lawal had pointedly accused the Federal Government of sabotaging the battle against banditry in the state by secretly opening negotiations with bandits without the knowledge of the state government.
A terse statement signed by the governor’s spokesperson, Sulaiman Idris, stated that a delegation allegedly sent by some agencies of the Federal Government had been in a series of secret talks with bandit groups in Zamfara, more galling to the governor is the fact that he was not consulted. Zamfara is an opposition state run the PDP
In a swift response, the Minister of Information, speaking through his spokesperson, Suleiman Haruna, last Tuesday’s night, vehemently denied negotiating with bandits and accused the Zamfara governor of politicising security matters.
In his reaction to the Minister, Dauda insisted that the State Government was in possession of hard evidence of the Federal government’s surreptitiously negotiating with bandits. To buttress his point, Lawal did not shy away from mentioning locations, where such talks were held with bandits, such as Birnin Magaji, Maradun, Mun Haye, Ajah, Bawo, and Bagege.
According to him, “We have facts and evidence on what had transpired between these agents of the Federal Government and the bandits during the negotiations in several places across Zamfara”.
Business Hallmark’s extensive investigations have revealed validity of Lawal’s claims, and put a lie to what the Minister was saying. Different sources told this medium that no less than seven leaders of the bandits that have been responsible for killings, kidnappings for ransom and other sundry terror acts and the displacement of tens of thousands of others in Nigeria’s troubled North-west region attended secret meetings with, at least, two individuals believed to be representatives of the Nigerian government in attendance.
These sources, who craved anonymity, told Business Hallmark that the largest meeting took place in Fankama, a community in Faskari Local Government, Katsina State.
“Let be frank with you, the meeting took place in Katsina, but there have been series of meetings subsequently in Zamfara State”, one of the sources said. These meetings were prompted by the abduction of 24 students of Federal Government University, Gusau.
Immediately the videos and photos from the Fankama meeting made it online, the defence headquarters said it would investigate the soldiers, who appeared in several video clips and pictures of the meeting with the terrorists. The meeting took place on the 18 of September.
It was learnt that the leaders of seven terror groups were in attendance at the Fankama meeting. Our sources gave their names as, Ado Aleiro, Yusuf Yellow, Masume, Alhaji Bandi, Alhaji Kabiru, Goma Tashin Like (which is his alias), and Idi Muwange.
“The truth is that initially we were not actively involved until the eleventh hour, but as I have said about seven top terror kingpins attended the late negotiations meetings, though, there were several others”, one of the sources confirmed to Business Hallmark. They were said to have come with their fighters while some people from Faskari and other areas were also invited, according to sources.
In one of the videos sighted by Business Hallmark, a top bandits leader, Mr. Aleiro was sitting alongside other leaders of the bandits leaders during the meeting.
Recall that in a controversial BBC documentary two years ago, Aleiro confessed to being cold serial murderer, boasting he doesn’t abduct but kills people.
Aliero has been associated with a number of unholy killings and kidnapping campaigns and general brigandage in mostly rural communities. He was also linked with the brutal killing of 60 people in Kadisau, a community in Faskari Local Government.
Yellow on the other hand, is said to be Aleiro’s cousin, who carries out his own operation independently of Aliero’s. He had earlier been accused of masterminding a number of kidnap-for-ransom operations, including the abduction of over 80 people, mostly children and women in Tsafe earlier this year.
At one time, Aleiro reached a peace accord with local leaders in Tsafe, but Yellow refused to stop his criminal and murderous enterprise, as he continued roaming villages in the area, killing and abducting residents.
Goma Tashin Like controls several terrorists around the Bilbis (Zamfara) and Hayin Gada axis (Katsina).
Mr Masume is the chief outlaw of Munhaye Forest, which extends from Tsafe (Zamfara) and Faskari (Katsina). Though he is mainly based in Fankama, his criminal activities extend to other areas, especially around Sabuwa Local Government. The duo of Messrs Bandi and Kabiru also operate around the Faskari/Sabuwa axis.
Various sources, who confided in Business Hallmark on condition of anonymity, by said the two ‘officials’ from ‘Abuja’, who led the meeting were someone simply identified as Bello and Muhammad Auwal. The village head of Faskari, the chief Imam and other elders were said to be at the meeting.
The development of secret negotiations have drawn the ire of many Nigerians, especially Northern leaders, who are unanimous in their view that past history has shown that negotiations with none state actors, such bandits and Boko Haram did not yield any results; and if anything have merely emboldened the terror gangs and provided needed oxygen for further terror.
Northern leaders were disappointed and have expressed frustrations that the federal government could be negotiating with bandits, when it is evident such negotiations had never worked in the past. They advised the Tinubu administration to retrace its step from such pacifist, cowardly path and confront the bandits militarily.
According to them, by negotiating with the bandits, the government is indirectly giving them and their criminal activity legitimacy. Such appeasement is a way of sending message that criminal act is rewarding and normal, adding that the move was sending a wrong signal that crime and violence can be rewarded rather than punished. Informed sources are blaming the former governor, Bello Mattawale, who is the minister of state for defence, for orchestrating this matter, ostensibly to undermine the state government, preparatory to 2023.
Reacting to the unwholesome development, the spokesman of the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), Professor Tukur Muhammad-Baba, argued that the cycle of negotiations is not only disappointing but has the capacity to fundamentally weaken the rule of law and set a regrettable precedent for other criminal elements in the country.
He said the fear is palpable that this approach might inspire other groups to take up arms and engage in similar acts. Describing the move as ‘weak,’ he urged the Federal Government to reconsider its stance on negotiating with bandits.
He said : “How will you begin a negotiation in Zamfara state without involving the Zamfara state government? You and I know this is a serious aberration and should not be taken lightly. There is no way you can come into my house without my knowledge, even if we are of the same father, and start doing this kind of thing is not good.
“It’s incredible. We are a Federation, and the Federal government is in charge of all security forces but the governor is the chief security officer of the state. How can anybody, in any sense, engage in such an activity without involving the state government? Negotiation with bandits has not worked in the past, and there is no evidence that it will work. Look at the characteristics of those involved in the banditry; they don’t have a central organization, they don’t have a central leadership. What we know about them is that they are bandits, who go about taking guns and taking the law into their hands”.
According to a report by UNICEF, there are over 300 such groups in Katsina, Sokoto and Zamfara. So, if you’re going to negotiate with them, who will you negotiate with? Are you going to negotiate with over 300 groups? It doesn’t make sense. And if you’re going to negotiate, does it not make sense to involve the state government? In the video, the negotiation was being manned by soldiers of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, in a state where there is a governor, so it doesn’t make sense. I doubt very much if the central government or the presidency is aware of it.
“Someone, somewhere, is trying to sabotage the government of Zamfara State; someone somewhere is doing that without thinking of the repercussions on the ordinary people in the rural villages and on students that are being harassed by these bandits. We heard on radio someone giving orders that the bandits should be allowed passage. Are you saying that they should leave Zamfara state and go to another state, and you’re providing them security coverage? This is a very terrible strategy and I call it dead on arrival.
“It doesn’t make sense, whoever did that should be investigated and should be punished by the government in power. This is not just about sabotaging the government in power, it is also sabotaging the federal government efforts itself. You cannot do that. You cannot negotiate with a faceless group and allow them passage with their guns and everything. Our organization is not happy with that. There cannot be an end to this insurgency without synergy between the federal government and regional synergy in all the states that are affected by this banditry. From Sokoto to Taraba, from Kaduna state to Kogi state, from Borno to Nasarawa state, it has to be coordinated and a well executed strategy to involve all the state governments and communities that have been affected by this banditry.”
Deji Adeyanju, human rights activist and Convener of Concerned Nigerians, in his take stated that: “Such negotiations can never end well. Like I have said over the years, that once people negotiate with terrorist groups, whether they call them Boko Haram, herdsmen whatever it is, whatever nomenclature you want to give it, once government begins to negotiate with non-state actors who are armed, people, who are causing mayhem all over the country, then we are sending the wrong impression to the public that criminality pays.
“More people will tend to stick to criminality and people will not have recourse to constitutional order in the country. So, whatever money and whatever things they are giving to the bandits, the bandits are only going to use it to further regroup and cause more mayhem on the populace, so it’s a bad idea, it is a show of complete failure of governance. Such things didn’t even happen under Obasanjo. Obasanjo dealt with OPC and the militants but today you see that these militants are romancing with the president.”
The Executive Director, Resource Centre for Human Rights & Civic Education (CHRICED), Dr. Ibrahim Zikirullahi, expressed his disappointment over the development, he advised the current administration to urgently restructure the military and ensure it regains its lost glory.
He said, “That singular act is a complete failure of the governance system in Nigeria because what it presents is that our security is no longer having the capability to deal with the insurgency and they are no longer trusted to do their work. And it’s almost like Nigeria is going into the abyss.
