Dateline: Monday, September 16, 2024. The terror-invested Zamfara State was on his mind. And Muhammad Dalijan Shehu graphically painted its gory picture. He was right on the spot.
You risk faulting him. Nobody else could have done it better. He’s its Commissioner of Police and oversees the command. Shehu understands his own fears. He knows what some others like us don’t know. He’s emphatic; Zamfara and terrorism are interwoven.
Terrorism is deeply rooted in the state. Indeed, it is the epicentre of terror. And its deadly and dreaded cousins. They include but not limited to banditry, kidnapping, robbery, et al.
Shehu had a rare opportunity dropped on his fragile laps that Monday. He was hosting Thomas Parker. He’s in charge of the Counterterrorism Unit, United Nations office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
He couldn’t afford to let the uncommon chance slip away carelessly. He grabbed it with all the strength he could muster. Wisely enough, he didn’t run away with it. That would have been a monumental disaster. He stayed put. And presented his trepidation to his august visitor.
His video clip was apt and precise. He didn’t mince, mix or miss words: “We can say now banditry is an industry in Zamfara State.” His revelation is shocking. It’s in another horrific dimension entirely. It is exceedingly beyond our wildest and weirdest expectation:
“Last month, we arrested a member of the state House of Assembly in banditry here in Zamfara State. We arrested a district head. We also arrested a former local government chairman.”
He lay bare his helplessness: “We can see that the involvement of this class of people in banditry is making the situation more complex.” Agreed! “In essence, I can say that all calibre of people are in involved.”
And the video clip rudely came to a sudden end. But the message is passed. It’s not lost on us, not even on Shehu. Outside the video, he literarily went cap in hand. He begged Parker for a forensic laboratory. He also sought assistance on training and speed up investigation and prosecution of suspects.
Bello Turji, is a huge reason Shehu is restless and restive. He knows the notorious terrorist kingpin is by every inch daring. He’s not a dramatist. All the same, he acts his devilish pronouncements.
He’s acutely short in words. But the little words he utters, he acts to the letter. He’s extremely long in actions. That is his area of core competence.
Turji is venturesomely audacious. Both in his pernicious thoughts, actions and inactions. His uncanny thirst for blood is insatiable. No pretension. No false front. He makes mincemeat of his preys effortlessly. Sad, tragic!
Turji is not given to emptiness. Or mouthing big words. Neither does he pretend. Instead, he flaunts it several times over. He beats his chest that he raids, abducts kills at will. Even after collecting handsome ransom. He doesn’t care a hoot.
He sees it as a sport. He is in his best element inflicting afflictions on others. He delights great pleasure from cruelty, savagery, brutality and viciousness. In fact, that way, he derives his strength.
He doesn’t discriminate in identifying and picking his unlucky victims. And he feasts on them with eerie relish. His craving for wickedness is gluttonous. It has no near duplicate.
He is unarguably the rave of the moment. And he rules our waves with maximum ease. And he enjoys every bit of it. He’s the thorn in our flesh. A big burden on us all. Turji, the terror! He is causing us pangs in our tenuous necks. Unleashing on us excruciating pain of no small means.
Our security chiefs can honestly attest to that. They are at the receiving end. He’s giving them sleeplessness plus nightmares. It is a long distance journey. The end seems to be farther by the second. The more we observe the less we perceive. Things are not anywhere getting clearer. They’re rather getting more blurred.
We are caught up in the crossroads of cobwebs. Those who ought to rise to the challenge? Many of them are confused, overwhelmed and bewildered. They have slid into deep slumber. It’s deliberate, intentional. And aren’t ready to wake up any time soonest.
That’s how hopeless our “renewed hope” has sunk. It’s going down the drain with utmost recklessness and carelessness. Agreed! This government didn’t cause this in any way. But it’s not helping matters in any manner.
Turji is left to have his dastard way of life unchecked. And we have genuine reasons to support this our thought process. Samplers: So-called capture of Nigerian Army’s two armoured personnel carrier (APC) trucks.
They wanted us to take it hook, line and sinker. That the relatively new trucks got stuck in Zamfara mud. These trucks are purposely built for difficult, rough terrains. And mud is one of them.
How come the two got stuck at the same time; almost at the spot? Besides, the terrain we saw in the clip was a hard surface. It was far from being muddy. The truck we saw them vandalise was standing on a solid ground. Not on a sinking one.
Turji’s men were in absolute control when the video lasted. They were looting the APC with glee. It was celebration of some great sort. As if they were expecting the loot. An arranged and perfect delivery of military wares to an enemy force.
That’s not how to fight an insurgence war. This anonymous report aligned with our fears: “In an amateur video on social media, Turji and his followers can be seen celebrating the possession of the APC and the acquisition of a cache of ammunition.”
This is how Bello Turji rules the waves, unchecked, unrestrained, unmolested. But the military came with its fire brigade approach. It put up a highly belated, mischievous face. In confusion, it half-heartedly churned out this weak defence:
“The Nigerian military was alerted by a distress call about a reconciliatory meeting between the Baleri banditry gang and some Zamfara locals in the Zurmi axis.
“The meeting was to resolve the differences between the locals and the bandits, similar to the same truce working in the Shinkafi area where there is relative peaceful coexistence.
“But by the time the Baleri boys arrived at the venue, they were attacked by another group also invited to the meeting. It was in the process that troops swung into action.
“Unfortunately, the APC became stuck in a marshy area. They had to retreat to their base to bring a tow truck. So, the APC was not captured by terrorists.
“They (terrorists) only took over the vehicle after noticing troops had withdrawn. It would be foolhardy to remain in a stranded vehicle. Adversaries could easily launch a deadly ambush.”
We can’t be this easily swayed. We can’t disbelieve what we saw in the video clip. We refuse to succumb to an unguarded and unguided make-believe. And we couldn’t have bought into it. It wasn’t tidy by any means. It was too loose. A poor kite to fly by any sane mind.
Earlier in neighbouring Sokoto State. We remember vividly Emir of Gobir, Alhaji Isa Bawa, 73. He lost his life to terrorists on Wednesday, August 21, 2024. He was kidnapped with his son the month before.
His abductors had zero tolerance for delay. Especially, when it bothers on huge ransom. They “demanded a large amount for their release.” The “long wait” made no meaning to the bandits. So? They did the “needful.”
They had “graciously” showcased the emir in a pitiable video clip. The location was not out of this world. It was right in Sokoto State. None of our security agencies was impressed by Gobir’s plight.
They left him to his poor fate. In grave and obvious danger. They could not track the bandits in their so-called forest in Sokoto!
The same security architecture could easily track the “masterminds” of the hunger protest. They got them arrested in the speed of light. Charged them for treason. And were violently thrown into prison.
Peaceful protesters they could cage. Kidnappers, bandits they dared not! That’s why the like of Bello Turji will continue to rule our waves. Even our world!
We aren’t seen anything yet!
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