Amid a wave of relentless bandit attacks, residents of Kebbe Local Government Area in Sokoto State have appealed to the Federal Government to grant them the right to bear arms for self-defence.
Their appeal follows fresh assaults by the deadly Lakurawa bandit group, which have left several people dead, many displaced, and entire communities living in fear.
Addressing journalists at the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Secretariat in Sokoto on Saturday, the leader of the group, Alhaji Adamu Haruna Kebbe, said residents have lost confidence in the government’s ability to protect them.
‘We can no longer sleep with our eyes closed. Our people are being killed almost daily, and the government has abandoned us to our fate,’ Haruna lamented.
He accused the state authorities of failing to assess the worsening security situation or provide adequate support to local security volunteers battling the bandits.
The community leaders also demanded direct federal allocations to local governments to enable them to fund and equip local security operatives. They argued that empowering communities would help them defend themselves and curb further bloodshed.
Sokoto has been one of the epicentres of banditry in northern Nigeria, with new militant groups such as the Lakurawas and the notorious gang led by Bello Turji terrorising villages across Isa, Sabon Birni and Kebbe local government areas.
Although the state government has acknowledged the growing threat, residents insist that government efforts have been too little, too late.
Security analysts say the residents’ desperate call for self-defence reflects the erosion of trust in the state’s capacity to safeguard lives and property.
‘If the government cannot protect us, it should allow us to protect ourselves,’ another community leader said.
As the attacks persist, the people of Kebbe warn that they will no longer sit idly by while bandits destroy their communities. Their message to the government is clear: act now or give us the right to defend ourselves.