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Matawalle’s Everyman One Gun Project In Zamfara By Bagbansoro Uthman

All is not going well in the country, even a day-old baby would agree with us who he or she is meeting that it’s not safe here, Kidnappers, Bandits, Evil doers and unknown Gunmen have completely taken over our lands and borders.

Farmers can no longer go to the farm, Goods can no longer be moved safely from Lagos to Minna, Kaduna to Ebonyi, Katagum to Ore, Jos to Benin, and one must be prepared to be attacked or kidnapped for ransoms by these evil doers.

Muslims can not go to Mosque with their two eyes closed, Christians now go to church wearing amulets, ‘Onde’, ‘Bante’ and all sorts of things to protect themselves from being killed.

No one can even travel via train without thinking twice since the Abuja-Kaduna Train has been attacked and passengers kidnapped with some still in captivity.

State Governors across the Federation who have sworn an Oath to protect lives and duty are now helpless because they lack control over the military and police thereby advocating for State Police.

Insurgency, banditry and kidnapping have become a quotidian aspect of Nigerian life. Killings and kidnappings have persisted with each incident surpassing the previous in gruesomeness, audacity and ruthlessness.

The situation has gone crazy in Zamfara State, North-West Nigeria, that the governor, Bello Matawalle has asked everyone in the state to start bearing arms to protect themselves — Every man, One gun project in the state.

The Zamfara State Commissioner for Information, Ibrahim Dosara, had in a statement on Sunday, disclosed that the government had directed residents of the state to prepare and obtain guns to defend themselves against bandits who have been terrorising the state.

The government, therefore, directed the state Commissioner of Police to issue licences to all those who qualify and are willing to obtain guns to defend themselves.

Dosara had said, “Government has, henceforth, directed individuals to prepare and obtain guns to defend themselves against the bandits, as the government has directed the state commissioner of police to issue a license to all those who qualify and are wishing to obtain such guns to defend themselves.

“Government is ready to facilitate people, especially our farmers, to secure basic weapons for defending themselves. The government has already concluded an arrangement to distribute 500 forms to each of the 19 emirates in the state for those willing to obtain guns to defend themselves.

“People must apply to the Commissioner of Police to own guns and such other basic weapons to be used in defending themselves. A secretariat or centre will be established for the collection of intelligence on the activities of informants.”

Similarly, the highest decision-making organ of the Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yoruba land, the Aare Ona Kakanfo-In-Council, on Monday supported Matawalle’s call for citizens of the state to bear arms.

Rising from its quarterly meeting, which was held at the Aare Ona Kakanfo palace in Lagos, the council, in a statement signed by the Gbonka Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yorubaland, Gboyega Adejumo, urged other governors in the South-West to take a cue from the new development.

The Yoruba traditional chiefs stated that the South-West can no longer tolerate the activities of terrorists masquerading as bandits and kidnappers killing innocent people at will.

Also, the Yoruba Socio-Political Group, Afenifere has also supported Matawalle’s Everyman one gun project whilst reiterating their stance on State Police.

Matawalle’s proposal shows that this house has fallen and the security architecture is ebbing towards an irredeemable precipice if not already fallen.

Quoting Albert Einstein, he said: “We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them. The problems were created by those with a regional mindset, and will not be solved by those with a similar mindset.”

Currently, policing is the exclusive preserve of the federal government. I believe unbundling the current policing arrangement where orders will have to come from Abuja for an operation in Onitsha or Agege is long overdue.

There’s no other time for state police other than now, let State Governors be entirely responsible for the security of lives and property in their domain and let’s see if there would be any further excused.

Winston Churchill said, “Victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory however long and hard the road maybe; for without victory there’s no survival”, Nigeria would surely record a breakthrough against these evil doers disturbing our lands, the military must now also stand up and start sending them to God to answer questions.

This country is like the testicles of a ram, which gyrates from side to side, as the animal runs. However fast the speed of the ram, have you ever seen the testicles fall off?

Or when a woman runs and holds her breasts, is it for fear that those tender parts will fall off? It never happens.

No matter what the evil doers do or say, irrespective of their machinations, Nigeria will survive. And peace, flowing like a river would abide therein.

Bagbansoro Uthman Olamilekan
[email protected]
Twitter: @TheBagbansoro

Gatekeepers News is not liable for opinions expressed in this article, they’re strictly the writer’s.

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