Niger State Govt To Move Out Communities From Bandits-Infested Areas
Niger State Government has announced plan to resettle villagers from bandits infested areas to safer grounds to enable the military confront the criminals without fear of collateral damage.
To this end, Niger State Governor, Mohammed Umaru Bago, has asked people living in villages and hamlets around the Kainji Lake to come out of the area and be resettled.
He said that Borgu Emirate Council will handle the resettlement of the villagers, expected to be concluded within two months.
Governor Bago made this known when he paid a sympathy visit to the Emir of Borgu, Alhaji Muhammad Haliru Dantoro Kitoro IV, at his palace in New Bussa, to sympathise with him and the people of the Emirate over recent terrorist attack in the area.
He said that the resettlement has become necessary to avoid collateral damage, as government is determined to clear the forest, flush out criminals using Kainji Lake as their camp, and make the land very habitable for people.
He decried the influx of people into the Emirates without being profiled, noting that it has become a security concern even as the activities of informants have thwarted security efforts in the Emirate.
The governor, therefore, tasked the Emirate Council to rise up to its responsibility and join forces with security agencies and government at all levels to combat any form of criminality in the area.
Responding, the Emir pledged to work closely with relevant authorities towards the resettlement plan and in ensuring peace and security in his domain, and across the state.
