By Bala Ibrahim.
Pursuant to the directive given to the military by President Tinubu, for the top hierarchy of the army, including the Minister of State, Defense, Bello Matawalle, to relocate to Sakwato, and flush out the bandits, particularly the notorious Bello Turji Kachalla, the bandits’ machinery of mercilessness is beginning to crumble. Bello Turji is the notorious terrorist and bandit leader, that has made life extremely unpleasant for the people. Since last week, when the military commenced a special operation in the axis, Turji’s coterie of criminals kept collapsing like a pack of cards.
The army seems to have arrived there with an extraordinary exasperation, and their show of force is sending shock waves to the nooks and crannies of the criminals. I have seen video clips of some soldiers speaking angrily in Hausa, calling on Turji to be man enough, by coming out to face the real men, the real men in uniform, that have arrived to eliminate him. Speaking in fury, and a manner that could make the bandits’ blood boil, the soldiers were calling on Turji to come out of hiding and test his valour. They were calling him names, provocative and unprintable names in Hausa. The aim of course, was to weaken him psychologically, before they get to crush him physically.
The zest they were relishing in the video seemed synonymous with that of an army acting with the instinct of the cannibals. Yes, they were sounding in a way that was saying, if we sight you Turji, we would eat you raw. We would use you for breakfast, lunch or supper, depending on the time of capture, it seems.
A few weeks ago, a video was widely circulated by the bandits, showing Turji, alongside his armed bandits, celebrating what they called, victory over the Nigerian military. In the video, the jubilant Turji, and his men, were mocking the military, after burning down two Armoured Personnel vehicles. Turji was moving with arrogance, saying in Hausa, “Bello Turji has seized two trucks. Nigerian Army, Bello Turji is coming for you, Insha Allah, if you don’t allow peace to reign. We are telling you and your clerics, that we are with Allah”.
It was humiliating for the army, because a well trained army like the Nigerian army, can not swallow the insult of being defeated by an untrained ragtag renegades.
In reaction, the army responded with a statement, signed by the Director of Defence Media Operations, Maj Gen. Edward Buba, saying the videos were fake. He said the two Armoured vehicles got stuck due to the swampy nature of the area, while troops were trying to outflank the terrorists at Kwashabawa village in Zamfara State. Since then, the anger of the military, and indeed that of all that have had any security training, was upgraded to anguish, leading to the celebrated directive from the President.
With such directive, and the speed with which the military acted, it is expected that they would do the needful there. They have no excuse not to end the activities of the bandits now. Many see the directive as the boldest decision taken by President Tinubu, in an effort to tackle the problem of insecurity. And from the pronouncement of the Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa, on Tuesday, the road to stamping out the terrorists seems signposted.
Turji is certainly one of the most feared bandit leaders in the Northwest. He recently imposed a N30 million levy on the residents, for their protection against attacks in Zamfara State. In an address to the press, Gen. Musa said and I quote:
“On the issue of Turji, he is just a deranged individual who feels power, but I can bet you that it’s just a matter of time. It is a matter of time; we’re going to get him, and I can assure you that it will be within the shortest possible time. We’re going to address that issue on the issue of payment of levy (to bandits). That is what they live on. And it shows you the desperation they are in”-Gen. Musa.
Since 2018, the number of attacks by bandits have been steadily and embarrassingly escalating. According to the estimate of the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data, ACLED, a staggering 13,485 deaths are attributed to banditry in Nigeria, between 2010 and May 19, 2023. Bandits’ revenue-generating mechanisms have evolved since 2011. Cattle rustling, robbery, kidnap for ransom, gold mining and farming activities have all played central roles in armed bandit resourcing and strategic positioning. Boko Haram, has killed an estimated 50,000 people and displaced more than 2.5 million people since it was established in 2002.
Between February and April, bandits invaded mosques and killed clerics and other persons in various areas of zamfara. They abducted 30 persons in Gusau, during Ramadan. Sometimes ago, over the weekend, they slaughtered three persons working on their farms in Benue State. Plateau experienced bloodletting during an attack by bandits on a market in Wase LGA. And such sad stories continue without an end. The North-West and North-Central are the worst-hit regions. In March, bandits abducted 137 pupils from a school in Chikun LGA, Kaduna State. This was followed by another abduction of 16 pupils of an Islamiyah school in Sokoto State. 66 people were killed in an attack on Madaka, Rafi LGA of Niger State in the same March.
Isah Bawa, the Emir of Gobir in Sokoto state, was abducted while returning from an event, and eventually killed by the bandits, after collecting ransom.
So, the idea of President Tinubu, turning the temper of the troops on Turji, couldn’t have come at a better time. In fact, it’s not wrong to say, it’s too little too late. Because, it’s long over due.