By Francis Sardauna:
The Katsina State 2023 governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Senator Yakubu Lado, has said the peace accord between Governor Aminu Bello Masari-led government and bandits has not yielded any result in the state.
He kicked against engaging the marauding bandits that have been attacking communities in the state in dialogue, describing them as deceitful criminal elements that have no ideology.
Lado, who spoke in an interview with journalists in Katsina, said the rapprochement between the government and the bandits has not tackled the prevailing security challenges bedevilling communities across the state.
Governor Masari had in 2019 granted second amnesty to bandits after a tour of Fulani settlements and strong enclaves of the bandits in Rugu Forest between September 4 and 9, during which the famed bandits and their forest commanders denounced banditry.
The peace accord was adopted by the North-west governors following a Peace Summit convened in Katsina by the former Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, that facilitated discussions with representatives of the bandits from the affected states of Katsina, Kebbi, Niger, Sokoto, Kaduna, and Zamfara States.
But Lado, during the media chat, described the negotiation with the bandits and other revolving security measures adopted by the state government aimed at tackling insecurity in the state as a futile exercise.
He added that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC)-led government and its 2023 governorship candidate, Dr. Dikko Umar Radda, have nothing new to offer to the citizens, adding that returning them to power would not make any difference.
According to him, “I didn’t know if he (Radda) was the one that advised the governor to go into the bush to have a peace deal with the bandits.
“But certainly the governor went into the bush and negotiated with the bandits but that didn’t bring any development. And that is to say all his strategies are not viable.”
Meanwhile, efforts to get government officials to respond on the issues raised by the PDP guber candidate were futile.
