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Bandits Kill 11 In Kastina Attack
Not fewer than eleven persons were reportedly killed in a fresh attack launched by armed bandits on nine villages of Kankara Local Government Area in Katsina State.
This was as angry residents in the area staged a protest with corpse of persons killed barricading for hours major highway linking to major parts of the state (the state capital and the southern part (Funtua axis).
Information gathered by our correspondent revealed that the bandits stormed the area by 5pm on Saturday evening and launched the attack on the villages.
Villages attacked include Pauwa, Katoge, Danhayi, Gidan Guge, Kaurawa, Jan Bago, Kadanya, Gidan Kwaki and Lambar Kantoma. Locals said the eleven persons killed – eight (8) and three (3) in Katoge and Yar kuka villages, respectively.
It was gathered that the protesters took the corpses to the palace of Sarkin Pauwan Katsina, Alhaji Yusuf Lawal and later to the Chairman of Kankara local government area, Hon. Anas Isah Kankara upon which they pleaded with the persons who succumb to the plea and funeral prayer was observed on the corpse and buried.
It was also gathered that the residents repelled the attack of the bandit in another village where they succeeded in killing two of the bandits.
The protest by the angry residents who barricaded the roads for hours also left commuters traveling along the route stranded as a result of a traffic jam. It took the intervention of security personnel to restore calm and open up the road while others diverted to take another route.
Meanwhile, more than 2,000 people protested yesterday in the northern Nigerian city of Maiduguri, calling for a ban on the anti-Boko Haram CJTF militia they accused of abuses after the killing of a rickshaw driver.
The protesters blocked major roads in the Suleimanti area of the city and set fires, causing chaos despite pleas from police and military officers, an AFP reporter at the scene saw.
“We want the CJTF to be banned from the city because of the abuses we suffer in their hands,” said Suleimanti resident Bukar Saleh.
“They have become a law unto themselves and are treating us badly. And now they have started killing us,” Saleh said. The CJTF militia tried to stop the demonstration, attacking protesters with batons and arresting scores of them. The protest erupted hours after a rickshaw driver was shot dead near a militia checkpoint.
“The victim was a known resident and his name was Modu but the CJTF just shot him for no reason,” Saleh said.
The CJTF insisted however that the victim was shot for failing to stop at a checkpoint during nighttime curfew hours.
The militia have intensified night patrols in the area in recent days following incursions by the jihadists.
“The driver’s refusal to stop raised the suspicion of our men and one of them took him down, because they believed he was a Boko Haram terrorist on a mission,” Babakura Abba-Ali, the CJTF head in Suleimanti area, said.
The militia man was handed over to the police for investigation, Abba-Ali added.
The CJTF emerged in 2013 as a vigilante group in response to Boko Haram’s deadly attacks in Maiduguri.
Young men and women mobilised and started going door-to-door hacking to death known Boko Haram members and forcing the jihadists to flee the city.
The vigilantes were later organised into a militia force and embedded with the military to fight the jihadist group.
Late Saturday, Boko Haram jihadists killed four people and looted food supplies when they raided Gamurari village, some 90 kilometres (60 miles) from Maiduguri, militia and residents said.
The decade-long Boko Haram conflict has killed at least 27,000 people and forced some two million to flee their homes in Nigeria alone. The violence has spilled into neighbouring Niger, Chad and Cameroon, prompting a regional military response to fight the jihadist group.
Following reinvigorated operational strategies and robust anti banditry operations injected in to the activities of Operation HARBIN KUNAMA III, troops have in renewed efforts arrested several gangs of bandits terrorizing Isa, Rabbah and Burkusuma communities around Sububu Forest in Sokoto State as well as in Batsari, Safana and Kankara in Dumburum Forest of Katsina State.
Similarly, troops deployed in Super Camp covering Bena, Jega, Danko and Wasagu encountered and annihilated uncomfirmed number of bandits and destroyed five bandits’ camps in Gando Forest of Kebbi State.
Briefing journalists on the activities of the operation, the General Officer Commanding (GOC), 8 Division, Nigerian Army, Maj-Gen Hakeem Otiki, said that five camps and 25 motorcycles were destroyed during the operation.
Otiki added that the operation which covers Katsina, Kebbi, Sokoto and Zamfara states witnessed series of successful simultaneous ground operations activities involving raids, ambushes, cordon and search with the occasional support of the Air Task Force component which the troops are poised to sustain.
The GOC further listed items recovered during the operation to include, 8 x AK-47 rifles, 2 x General Purpose Machine Guns, 2 x G3 rifles, 3 x dane guns, 9 x AK-47 magazines, and 48 x rounds of 7.62mm special ammunition.
According to him, “The operation is to facilitate the return of refugees and internally displaced persons back to their homes, creating enabling environment for economic activities to strive and instilled confidence in the locals to remain in their villages and continue their normal lives unmolested.
He assured the residents of the Nigerian Army readiness to provide adequate security and improve synergy and collaboration with other security agencies within 8 Division Area of Responsibility with the aim of Combating banditry, cattle rustling, kidnapping and other security challenges.
Otiki used the opportunity to commend the gallant officers and soldiers of the Division for their resilience and patriotism in the ongoing operation even as he commends members of various vigilante groups and local hunters for their supportive roles to troops.
He appealed to residents of the areas to always provide useful and timely information to the security agencies for prompt action.
Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, has described the ongoing construction of the brand new 13.52-kilometre Ngo-Atlantic-Oyorokoto Road as a bold and visionary effort by his administration to open up the coastal region for economic growth and harness the full potential of the state’s blue economy.
The Governor made this remark during an inspection visit to the project site in Andoni Local Government Area. The road, being constructed by Monier Construction Company (MCC), cuts through challenging coastal terrain and leads to a newly identified beachfront facing the Atlantic Ocean.
Governor Fubara explained that while the original plan was to construct a road leading to Oyorokoto Town and its popular beach, his administration decided to expand the project to create an entirely new route that would open access to another pristine beachfront.
“We are doing another inspection today. This particular one is a virgin road, 13.52 kilometres of a new pathway to the blue economy,” Governor Fubara stated.
“Initially, we were constructing a road to Oyorokoto Beach, one of the finest tourist centres in this area. But as we progressed, we discovered another beach directly facing the Atlantic Ocean. It became clear that we shouldn’t limit development to just one site. We want to harness this new beach front as part of our broader plan to develop the blue economy.”
The Governor emphasised that the project, once completed, will not only improve access to coastal communities but also stimulate tourism and economic activities, boosting revenue for Rivers State.
Describing the area’s difficult terrain as challenging, he commended the contractor for its dedication, and expressed confidence that the road would be completed and commissioned by March next year.
“You can see for yourself, it’s a brand-new road in a very difficult terrain, just like the one we saw yesterday. But I strongly believe we will overcome it. From what we’ve seen today, the contractor, MCC, is doing their best, and by next year, hopefully by March, we’ll have the cause to commission this project and give God all the glory,” the Governor affirmed.
Governor Fubara also visited Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Area to assess the progress of work on the Epellema axis of the ongoing 5.2km Kalaibiama-Epellema road project featuring a 450-meter bridge.
Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, has expressed satisfaction with the level of progress recorded on the ongoing Trans-Kalabari Road project, revealing that about 75 percent of the critical piling work has been completed.
Governor Fubara made this known while addressing journalists after an on-the-spot inspection of the 12.5-kilometre road project, which will connect the state capital to several Kalabari communities across the sea.
The Governor rode on a boat from a jetty at Rumuolumeni in Obio/Akpor Local Government Area through the rivers and creeks on the project route during the inspection.
The project was awarded to Lubrik Construction Company Limited, on May 15, 2024, with an initial 32-month completion timeline.
The Governor said the visit was aimed at verifying reports from the Ministry of Works regarding the project’s advancement. He commended the contractors for their dedication, and described the progress as “a true reflection of hard work and commitment to excellence.”
“The first phase of the project takes us to Bakana, and features four major river-crossing bridges and nearly five deck-on-pile structures. The terrain is difficult, and the engineering work required is complex. But to the glory of God, I can confirm that the reports I’ve been receiving are accurate. Almost 75% of the piling job, which is the most critical part of the project, has been achieved,” Governor Fubara said.
He emphasised that the Trans-Kalabari Road is one of the most technically demanding infrastructure projects in the state due to its challenging marine terrain but reaffirmed his administration’s resolve to deliver it on schedule.
Governor Fubara highlighted the strategic importance of the road in connecting the Kalabari Kingdom to Port Harcourt, and stimulating economic growth across riverine communities.
“This is a key project that will turn around the lives of the Kalabari people immediately it is concluded. By the grace of God, in the next six months, if we return here for inspection, we might be driving across the bridge,” he said.
Governor Fubara assured Rivers people that his administration remains focused on delivering transformative infrastructure projects that will improve lives and bring lasting development to rural communities.
“We have made a promise to our people to embark on projects that will change lives and bring development, and this is a testament to that commitment,” he added.
The Governor of Rivers State, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, says that the impact of flooding and erosion on the inhabitants of Rivers State, especially those living in coastal communities, are of great concerns to the government.
Governor Fubara lamented the consequences of flood on both human and biotic life, which sometimes lead to loss of life, property, and degradation of the environment.
The Governor made the remark in Port Harcourt during the launch of a book titled, ‘Coastal Zone Flooding And Erosion in Developing Communities, Principles, Cases and Strategies,” written by Emeritus Prof. Wiston Bell-Gam.
According to the Governor, who was represented by the Secretary to the State Government, Hon. Benibo Anabraba, his administration, would continue to undertake and encourage adaptation strategies to combat flooding.
In his words: “The Rivers State Government will continue to undertake and encourage adaptation strategies, such as construction of seawalls and breakers, canals and channels, restoring coastal ecology and ecosystem for coastal resilience and where necessary, the relocation of communities on the coastline.
“These issues are currently receiving the much needed attention and intervention by the recent approval of the construction of shoreline protection along the coastlines of more than five communities in Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni and Opobo/Nkoro LGAs respectively.”
“It is important that as stakeholders in the protection and preservation of marine environment, we all act and advocate for mitigation strategies such as reduction in emission of Green House Gasses that causes climate change and rise in sea levels. Let us promote the use of clean energy and against fossil fuel.
Governor Fubara further cautioned residents to desist from building on waterways.
“We also need to encourage our people to stop developing buildings on and along natural water courses, indiscriminate sea mining and dredging activities on our coastline without consideration for mangroves and swamps,” he stressed.
He appreciated the author for his advanced contributions to the body of knowledge in both Rivers State and globally.
Also speaking, a former Military Governor of the old Rivers State and Amayanabo of Twon Brass, King Alfred Ditte-Spiff, who was Royal Father at the Event, stated that the book was timely to enable stakeholders manage the challenges of global warming.
“Global warming is real. If it’s not addressed globally, a time will come coastal areas will find themselves under water. The coastline of Nigeria is shocking with many mangroves gone,” he noted.
The Reviewer of the Book, who is also the Vice Chancellor of Olusegun Agagu University of Science and Technology, Ondo State, Prof Temi Ologunorisa, explained that the 14-chapter book is timeous as it fills literary gaps between desire and available knowledge on coastal flood and erosion in developing communities.,
“A major beauty of the book that sets it apart is the detailed consideration of flood and erosion control from around the world,” he stated, adding that the book is based on detailed field investigation.