By Muhammad Goronyo, Sokoto
Professor Abubakar Muhammad mni of Sociology Department of Usman Danfodio University Sokoto has said that over one million persons in rural areas of the north eastern part of nigeria have been displaced by banditry. He made the disclosure during the 2024 annual Management Lecture and Presentation of Merit Awards in Sokoto recently.
In a paper titled “The Impact of Banditry on Victims,Society and National Security Management in Nigeria”, Abubakar highlighted that the victims of banditry are mostly inhabitants of the rural areas adding that in the northwest zone as at February 2022 it was estimated that over 12,000 were killed, over 1,000,000 displaced and over 1,000,000 out of school children (CDD, Feb. 2022).
“The impact of banditry on both the victims and the society are enormous and profoundly negative in the increase in criminal activities especially kidnapping for ransom and cattle rustling, reduction in commercial activities especially with the frequent closures of very important markets, food insecurity is marked by scarcity of foodstuffs and inflation caused by the disruption of farming activities due to the intervention of banditry”, he averred among many others.
Also contained in the lecture, he discussed Challenges of National Security Management,Banditry, Impacts of Banditry and recommendations of which partly are the implementation strategy for constitutional amendment by the Legislature and an alteration of the Revenue Allocation Formula in favour of the states and Democratic Local Government Councils.
Professor Abubakar also said the “civil service should be invigorated and energized to develop executive capacity.
“As Professor Tijjani Muhammad Bande(2024) pointed out recently that the civil service is necessary in every state as the sole organ for the formulation and implementation of policies. He emphasized that the civil service is Paramount as the protector of the Public Interest. As such there is a fundamental prerogative to recruit, train and adequately fund the civil service for the rapid development of the state especially in the social sector”.
