“Banditry, Terrorism In North West Fuelled By Poverty, Neglect” – Gov Sani On Why He Pays Them

By Suleiman Anyalewechi

The Kaduna State Governor, Senator Uba Sani, has insisted that firearms alone can not decisively resolve the teething security challenges in the country.

This is as he warned against the over politicization of insecurity in Kaduna State and other parts of the Northern region of  Nigeria.

At the occasion of the formal launch of the book  Where I Stand, written by late Sheikh Abubakar Gumi,

held by the Jama’atu Izalatul Bid’ah Wa Iqamatus Sunnah on Saturday, September 6, 2025, Governor Sani  totally rejected claims suggesting that bandits and other criminal elements could be bombed out of existence.

The Governor was reacting to recent criticism and allegation by   his predecessor in office, Malam Nasir El-Rufai, that the Federal Government of Nigeria and the Kaduna State authorities have been paying monthly allowances to bandits and other criminal elements as a way of pacifying them.

But speaking on Saturday, Governor Sani  noted that as the elected representatives of the people, it will amount to abdicating their responsibilities ,if they don’t explore all available lawful means to secure the people.

“I decided to embark on the non-kinetic approach to address insecurity in Kaduna State because it is me that God will hold responsible in the hereafter.

“We should not deceive our people by saying President Bola Ahmed Tinubu or the National Security Adviser, NSA, Nuhu Ribadu, is responsible .We should not expect them to go to Giwa, Birnin Gwari or Dansadau forest to solve the problem for us. We were elected by the people, and it is our duty to do everything possible to protect our people”, Governor Sani stated .

According to him, Kaduna State’s non-kinetic approach to addressing insecurity is anchored on community-participation and driving by Traditional and Religious leaders, as well as other major stakeholders.

Referencing Birnin Gwari where the involvement of the Emir, Religious leaders and other stakeholders have brought about relative peace, the Governor insisted that employing alternative measures outside the use of force could be the masterstroke needed to bring lasting peace.

He emphasized the imperative of a non-kinetic approach more so in the face of the insufficient number of security personnel needed to effectively monitor and protect vast amount of ungoverned areas across the country.

According to him, with an armed force not more than 250,000 in number ,and with the increasing level of  Nigeria’s population, it will be difficult, if not a mirage to be talking about addressing insecurity through the use of force alone.

“If you go to Zamfara, Birnin Gwari, or the forests of Katsina, you can go for about 50 kilometers without meeting a single policeman, not to talk of a soldier.

“We have vast areas in this country without any security. In this case too,we discovered that poverty, unemployment, lack of schools, hospitals and commercial opportunities in the rural areas pushed people into criminal activities. So our non-kinetic approach is a way of accepting responsibilities as leaders rather tgan apportioning blames.

“Insecurity cannot be resolved solely through the use of firearms. Whoever makes such a claim is only playing politics. We must fear God, and stop deceiving the people, because that approach will not work”, Sani insisted.

He explained that unlike the case of Boko Haram and or ISWAP in the North East region whose activities are ideologically-driven,   banditry and other forms of criminal activities ravaging the North West region are rooted and fueled by poverty, unemployment and neglect of Communities.