By Idibia Gabriel, Kaduna
Governor Uba Sani of Kaduna State has urged the opposition to stop politicizing insecurity by claiming that bandits can be defeated through carpet bombing or sheer force. He maintained that such claims are deceptive and unrealistic.
The governor, in a statement by his spokesman Ibraheem Musa on Saturday, stressed that insecurity cannot be resolved solely with firearms. “Whoever makes such a claim is only playing politics. We must fear God and stop deceiving the people because that approach will not work,” he said.
Sani gave the advice during the public presentation of Where I Stand, a book written by the late Sheikh Abubakar Mahmud Gumi and translated into Arabic by Sheikh Ibrahim Jalo Jalingo. He represented President Bola Tinubu as the Special Guest of Honour and also served as Chief Host at the event organized by Jama’atu Izalatul Bid’ah Wa Iqamatus Sunnah (JIBWIS).
According to him, insecurity in the North West differs from the Boko Haram insurgency in the North East, which is ideologically driven. He explained that banditry in the North West stems largely from poverty, unemployment, and the neglect of rural communities.
Governor Sani also raised concerns over Nigeria’s dwindling security manpower despite a growing population.
“In 1970, after the civil war, Nigeria had about 300,000 soldiers. Today, they are fewer than 250,000, while our population has increased by over 100 million. How then can anyone say guns alone will solve the problem? It is impossible,” he stressed.
He lamented the absence of security presence in vast parts of the North West. “If you travel to Zamfara, Birnin Gwari, or the forests of Katsina, you can go about 50 kilometers without seeing a single policeman, not to talk of a soldier. We have vast areas in this country without any security personnel,” he said.
The governor highlighted the Kaduna Peace Model, which emphasizes a non-kinetic approach involving traditional and religious leaders as well as community stakeholders. He cited Birnin Gwari as an example, where the Emir led peace efforts after six months of consultations to identify the root causes of insecurity.
“We discovered that poverty, unemployment, lack of schools, hospitals, and commerce in rural areas pushed people into crime,” he said, insisting that leaders must take responsibility.
“We should not deceive our people by saying President Tinubu or National Security Adviser Ribadu is responsible. We should not expect them to go to Giwa, Birnin Gwari, or Dansadau forest to solve the problem for us,” Sani declared.
He added: “We were elected by the people, and it is our duty to protect them. I decided to adopt the non-kinetic approach in Kaduna State because God will hold me responsible in the hereafter.”
