*withdraws services
By Achadu Gabriel, Kaduna
A cold war is currently brewing between the personnel of Kaduna State Vigilantes Service (KAGVS), its commandant, and the state government, over nonpayment of dead benefits of members killed in operation.
The survivors personnel entitlements are also in contention.
Some Personnel of KAGVS who are seriously at loggerhead with the Ministry of Internal Security and Home Affairs on what they described as used and dumped tactics of the state government have been given suspension letter.
In an interviews with our correspondent, two of the aggrieved vigilantes personnel on suspension explained that till date nothing like dead benefits have been given to their three colleagues who lost their lives during operations along with 20 Nigeria army personnel.
The group leaders, Jameel Abdulrahaman and Umar Ahmed Tijani told our reporter in Kaduna that they were brought back from the field operation locations and drop on the road about seven months ago without any promise for appreciation or compensation.
Voicing their anger, Abdulrahaman and Tijani said they’ve written several complaint letters to relevant authorities including commissioner, Ministry of Internal Security and Home Affairs, Mr Samuel Aruwan, and copied police commissioner and others, but the letters only earned them suspension.
“My name is Jemeell Abdulrahaman. We’re here to tell you about our issues with Kaduna state vigilantes Service (KAGVS), the Kaduna state government and the commissioner Internal Security and Home Affairs Mr Samuel Aruwan. We’ve copies of letters we wrote to him.
“We stayed for about 8 months and 2 weeks in operations field. Before we went for the operations field they gave us training for two weeks in police college and another training in Kachia Base Camp military training.
“They teach us how to fight armed bandits under training title: Combat Graft techniques. For us to protect Kaduna state and Nigeria in general. We spent the 8 months in operation field without any entitlement.
“Some of our colleagues died in the operation field and no dead benefits was given to them. So we’re doing this for the dead colleagues to have their own entitlement and their death benefits including our own entitlement.
Kaduna state should give us recommendation letter for what we’re doing to protect the nation and the state. We got nothing from them when back from the operation field 7 months age.
“They just left us behind in our places without any concern. We drop out for lack of concern and any allowance. Now we ask of entitlement they start fighting us.
“We have not been paid anything aside the N10,000 they gave each of us then, when they open account for us in Zenith bank and N5, 000 they give us when going to Kachia. Apart from that N15,000 no money join us with them again”
According him, Over 1000 of the. volunteers joined the training. “The number of those taken to operation field was 202 people. They keep us at Sabon Birinin defensive location and Buruku military defensive locations, where we were later despatched to practical operations, that’s the flash spots.
‘When the operations ended, they brought us and drop us by the road side instead of police college.
“They also lied to media, BBC, VOA that they trained 10,000 people to end the insurgency in Kaduna”, he adding that the 10,000 was training allowance given them.
“They send the N10,000 to us after the break. Then we came back 2 weeks time preparing to go to kachia, before going to kachia they promised to give us something, and that we should come with someone who is going to collect the message for us.
“We did that but no message for us so we now said we’re not going, they now give N5000 each and asks us to go, that all our allowances will be paid after we come back.
“So we went to Kachia for 2weeks, after our training they brought us back to police collage, that was all. We stay at home for two weeks break, brought back, selected 202, ask the rest to go, took us to locations.
“That was last year August 2021 and came back this year around April 2022. Drop us at rigasa railway station. Since them we’ve been writing them letters even to commissioner Aruwan before we start this struggle.
“The problem is that they refused to give us allowances, not because insecurity is over. We were even promised that the state will employed us as personnel at the end of the operations.
“They are 3 that was killed of our colleagues. We wasted our time and lives and came with nothing. We were used and dump. Instead of appreciating us they gave us letter of suspension because of the struggling to be paid our entitlement and dead benefits. Even the KAGVS leaders they connected us to, are also fighting us”, they said.
All effort made to contact the commissioner internal security through his phone, failed as he neither respond chats message nor called back.
However, the zonal Commander Ali Usman and the state Commandant of KAGVS Brigd Gen. Umar Ibrahim (rtd), told our correspondent that there was not former agreement or arrangements for any payment of entitlement for personnel between them and government for the services.
He however said they’ve communicated to the government officially on the demise personnels and expected something would be done for those killed, but declined to make the letter available when requested.
He emphasized that the personnel were invited to offered the service voluntarily from their various areas which constituted flash pont of bandits attacks especially Chikun, igabi, B/Gwari among others, without anything attached.
“We’re doing this in anticipation that one day government will give us recognition same way it happen to NSCDC. So is voluntary for now.
The zomal commander and his Boss also faulted the aggrieved personnel of not following the protocols for writing letters of complaints directly to internal security commissioner instead of the KAGVS command, saying the action to mobilised the personnel for bandits war was based on verbal arrangement between the command and government officials beginning with Ward, LG and state Command level to come and render voluntary service to their community, state and nation at large.
While the commandant agreed that N9 million given him by the army was shared to the personnel completely, he also said that they gave befitting burial to the dead personnel and reached out to the families, even as the KAGVS denied knowledge of 3 dead, saying the third person was attacked and killed in his house area by bandits not on location.
Vigilante personnel confirmed that “We work sides by side with Nigeria army 2battalion under one major Bature for 8 months, two weeks as well as auxiliary to police and other security agencies – those who have the patriotic zeal. From central security patrol where they took us from, they promised to do better for KADVS.
As at last count, Human Rights body involved in the matter is said to have arranged for a meeting between the affected personnel and the command with a view for amicable resolution.
