Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State has said he did not appoint anybody to negotiate with bandits on his or the government’s behalf.
He also said anyone found negotiating on behalf of the government would be arrested and prosecuted.
This was made known in a statement issued by the Commissioner for Internal Security and Home Affairs, Samuel Aruwan, on Sunday debunking a report in the media suggesting that the government had appointed representatives to interface with the bandits on its behalf.
To this end, the state government had said there was nothing like that, saying “the position of the Kaduna State government remains the same.
“The government will not negotiate with or pay ransom to bandits. Any person who claims to do so in any capacity, if found, will be prosecuted accordingly.”
It said the citizens of the state should not hesitate to report any person posing as government officials or negotiators to the Kaduna State security operatives.
It also said such information should be channelled to the following GSM 09034000060, 08170189999 and email internal.security@kdsg.gov.ng.