Terrorists, informants, and kidnappers face the death penalty under a new Zamfara law.

Ibekimi Oriamaja Reports

As part of his administration’s efforts to end insecurity in the state, Zamfara State Governor Bello Matawalle has signed into law a bill mandating the death penalty for bandits, kidnappers, cattle rustlers, cultists, and other criminals, including their informants.

Matawalle also prohibited all political activities in the state, including gatherings and rallies, until the official start of electioneering, as specified in the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) 2023 election timetable.

President Muhammadu Buhari approved the appointment of Rear Admiral Yaminu Musa (rtd) as the first Coordinator of the National Counter Terrorism Centre (NCTC) for a five-year term.

In another development, Rev. Yunusa Nmadu, General Secretary of the Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA), condemned the Kaduna State governor, Nasir El-Rufai, for recently admitting that terrorists were running a parallel government in his state. Nmadu called the governor’s remark a “admittance of failure that came a little too late.”

However, the Nigerian Army’s Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt.-Gen. Farouk Yahaya, stated yesterday that the Nigerian Army was combat ready to deal with terrorists in the country.

Matawalle stated in a live broadcast from Gusau, the state capital, that the death penalty was included in the 2022 Prohibition and Punishment for Banditry, Cattle Rustling, Cultism, Kidnapping, and Other Incidental Offenses Law, which he personally signed on June 28, 2022.

According to the new law, anyone found guilty of supporting or assisting banditry, kidnapping, cattle rustling, or other related offenses in the state faces life imprisonment, 10 or 20 years in prison, with no option of fine.

“It becomes necessary for me to address you once more on the issue of security in our dear state,” the governor said in a state broadcast. You may recall that, following increased banditry attacks in some parts of the state beginning in June 2022, we determined that new security measures were required to combat the situation effectively.

“As a result, I established four security-related committees to implement the most recent security measures.” Similarly, I signed the bill on Prohibition and Punishment for Banditry, Cattle Rustling, Cultism, Kidnapping, and Other Incidental Offenses, 2022 on June 28th. The law establishes a legal framework for prosecuting banditry-related offenders.

“Under the new law, anyone convicted of banditry, kidnapping, cattle rustling, cultism, or acting as a bandit’s informant faces the death penalty.” Similarly, anyone found guilty of any of the aforementioned offenses faces life in prison, 20 years in prison, or 10 years in prison, without the option of a fine.”

He explained that, despite his government’s efforts to enforce the new security measures in order to combat insecurity in the state, some unscrupulous elements were determined to thwart the efforts under the guise of conducting political activities.

Matawalle stated that the state government was now determined to take the necessary steps to prevent “shady elements” from achieving their “nefarious objectives.”

“As a result, all political activities, including gatherings and rallies, are hereby prohibited,” he said. Political activities should begin only when campaigns officially begin, as outlined on the INEC timetable. Anyone found violating the order will be dealt with by security forces.”

Following the recent incursion of bandits in some areas on the outskirts of Gusau, the state capital, he also banned motorcycles from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. in Mareri, Damba, Tsunami, Tsauni, Barakallahu, Samaru, Gada Biyu, and Janyau East.

Meanwhile, according to a statement issued yesterday by the president’s media adviser, Femi Adesina, Musa’s appointment is effective immediately and will last for five years.

Musa had been Director of the Counter Terrorism Directorate in the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) since 2017.

He was in charge of revising the National Counter Terrorism Strategy (NACTEST) and developing the Policy Framework and National Action Plan for Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism (PCVE), both of which Buhari signed into law in 2016 and 2017.

In addition, for the past three years, the retired naval officer has served as Nigeria’s representative at the Global Counterterrorism Forum (GCTF).

The National Counterterrorism and Terrorism Financing Coordinating Committee (NCTC) was established in the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) as the coordinating body for all counterterrorism and terrorism financing efforts in the country.

The NCTC was also tasked with coordinating counterterrorism policies, strategies, plans, and providing support to the National Security Adviser (NSA) in carrying out his or her duties under the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act 2022.

The ECWA Scribe condemns El-admission Rufai’s of terrorist parallel government.

Rev. Yunusa Nmadu, General Secretary of the Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA), described Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-recent Rufai’s admission of a parallel terrorist government in his state as a “admittance of failure coming a little too late.”

Nmadu told journalists in Kaduna that the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) and other individuals in the state had been discussing the issue for a long time, but the state government had tried to counter them.

“Governor EL-Rufai is admitting too late in the day,” said the ECWA general secretary. It’s been there, CAN has been singing it, some of us have said it, and they’ve tried to refute what we’ve said.

“In some northern states, we have two governments. Our churches can be found all over the country. Today, there are places where bandits collect taxes. You must also pay the tax if you want your wife to be safe from rape. These are the facts.”

Nmadu, a former secretary of the CAN chapter in Kaduna, also stated that in some communities, people were unable to go to their farms unless they paid money to the bandits in order to avoid attack.

“We have two governments,” he said, “and it is an admission of total failure on the part of government.” I used to work as the secretary of CAN in Kaduna. Under the Buhari regime, there has been a lot of violence, killings, and destruction. People have been killed and kidnapped in the last seven years, and places of worship have been destroyed almost daily.”

He claimed that the Buhari administration emboldened criminals.

According to the ECWA scribe, “over the years, there were crises, violent attacks on churches, and it progressed to looking for human beings to kill.” As you are aware, we have progressed from that to terrorism, which is what we are currently dealing with.

“This is what we predicted would happen, because with the arrival of President Buhari, the criminals on the fringes will be emboldened to do more…

You cannot infer this from statements he made before becoming president, such as “his people were being killed while Boko Haram was being decimated by national forces.”

Nmadu, who is also Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW-N), described the recent threat by the National Assembly to impeach Buhari as hypocritical because, according to him, the lawmakers were just waking up to the reality of things because they were now feeling the heat of insecurity.

He stated, “My problem with Nigerians is that we are highly hypocritical. Let me give you an example. If there is a dangerous pothole on the road, it will not be fixed, except when a notable person has an accident on the spot. Before you knew it, they will fix the pothole. It looks like the life of the common man does not matter in Nigeria.

“The senators are just waking up to the reality too late in the day and I think it is because they are now feeling the heat of insecurity. I don’t see any seriousness in what they are saying. It has died down…I think they just woke up because it has started affecting them and their relations.

“Secondly, because election is near and they want to go back to their constituencies to win election. I think they are doing this to make people feel they are concerned about the common man.”

On the Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), the clergyman said those planning same faith tickets either in Kaduna State or at the federal level had failed the exam already.

He said, “This is not in the interest of Muslims neither is it in the interest of Christians. I will never support same faith ticket even if it is the Christians, where both faiths have substantial population. Of course, there are states that are predominantly populated by Muslims, you cannot go there and ask for Muslim-Christian ticket, that is understandable.

“There are also states that are predominantly Christians, you cannot go there and ask for Christian-Muslim ticket. It is understandable. I don’t know how anybody in their political calculation will ever think that they will win election in Nigeria without the Christians or win election in Nigeria without the Muslims or even people without faith. This is our country, we are so divided. In the last seven years, the gap has increased so wide.

“It is expected that any government that is coming in 2023 should emphasis unity and how to bring the people together. Same faith ticket by the APC is dead on arrival. It is not in the interest of the unity of our country. I think that those who are even pushing the candidate to do this do not mean well for him … they want him to fail election. They are misleading him so that he can fail and fail very well.”

Yahaya Assures Army Combat Ready for Terrorists

Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Farouk Yahaya, yesterday, said the Nigerian Army was combat-ready to deal with terrorists in any part of the country. Yahaya stated this at a seminar with the theme, “Intensifying warrior ethos and regimentation in the Nigerian Army,“ organised for officers and soldiers of the 8 Division at Lt.-Gen. Tukur Buratai auditorium, Giginya Barack, Sokoto, by the Department of Transformation and Innovation.

Represented by the General Officer Commanding 8 Division (GOC) and Commander, Operation, Hadarin Daji, Maj.-Gen. Uwem Bassey, Yahaya said the officers and soldiers should employ new tactics and innovation in their fight against terrorists.

He admitted that Nigeria was facing huge security challenges, ranging from banditry in the North-west and North-central, terrorism in the North-east, and militias in the South-east and South-south.

He urged the officers and soldiers to demonstrate a high level of professionalism and dedication in carrying out their duties by strictly adhering to the task’s rules. He advised them to focus their efforts on addressing the country’s security challenges.

He, on the other hand, maintained that the troops had achieved tremendous success against the country’s enemies, emphasizing that all Nigeria’s adversaries must be decisively defeated.

“Let me tell you, this is within our constitutional responsibility as an army,” he said, adding that they should use victory songs as a rallying cry and work to change the psyche of the troops by developing a winning posture.

Earlier, the Nigerian Army’s Chief of Transformation and Innovation, Maj Gen Ofoche Charles, said the seminar was appropriate and timely, given recent events in the country.

He insisted that the seminar was intended to re-energize and reawaken regimentation cultures in the Nigerian Army.