Bandits in Zamfara have outlined conditions to cease attacks on Communities.
According to Usman Nagoggo, the state commissioner of police, one of the conditions given by the bandits is the end to extra-judicial killings of Fulanis.
Nagoggo also noted that they are also demanding that they be allowed to go to local markets without fear or intimidation, Daily Trust reports.
The commissioner, who disclosed this during a meeting with vigilantes and volunteers, popularly known as Yan Sakai, said the crisis is being fuelled by unlawful executions of suspected criminals.
He stated that the armed men had been contacted by authorities, and they gave the assurance that they would stop the killings in the state, only on conditions.
“Part of the conditions they gave was that the Yan Sakai should halt the extrajudicial killings of Fulani, especially in local markets. The bandits said they should be allowed to attend local markets without fear or intimidation,” he said.
“That is why we are holding this meeting to intimate you about the new peace road map being designed by the government. In a situation whereby a local vigilante will kill one of the bandits and the armed men would slay about 30 persons in retaliation, what is the gain here?”
Over the unlawful killings of suspected criminals, he urged vigilante leaders to ensure that their followers desist from such practice.
The secretary of the Yan Sakai group in the state, Sani Babbar Doka, reacting to the development, stated:
“In the peace pact that took place about three years ago, we surrendered our arms as demanded by the government, but the armed criminals did not. We are ready for anything that will ensure that peace returns to our communities, but not at the detriment of the opposing group.”
Secretary to the state government, Professor Abdullahi Walin Shinkafi, had stated that least 4000 people had been killed, and more than 9000 injured in about 500 attacks.