In the last few weeks there has been a remarkable and devastating onslaught on the killer bandits and murderous terrorists of North Western Nigeria.
Zamfara State has been the model case and other North Western states including Katsina, Kaduna, Sokoto, Jigawa, Kebbi and Niger State have taken the cue and have also risen to the occassion.
What the Governors of these states have done has been inspiring and has brought hope to millions of people all over the North and indeed all over the country.
They have labelled the bandits as terrorists, they have cut off their supplies and supply lines, they have cut off their communication networks, they have freed thousands of captives, they have killed and captured hundreds of terrorists and they have scattered their cells and operations and put them in dissaray.
I have spoken to countless people in the North West over the last one week and at least three families whose children and relatives were released from captivity and there is a deep sense of relief that at last something is being done.
Hope has been restored and the fact that the governors of these states are taking the battle to the gates of the terrorists in conjunction with the DSS, the Army, the Airforce, the Nigerian Police Force and all the other security and Intelligence agencies has proved that once there is a strong resolve and the political will to do something about insurgency and terrorism there is always a way.
For this effort we must commend each of the governors of these respective states and particularly the Governor of Zamfara, the heads of all our security agencies, the military service chiefs and President Muhammadu Buhari himself.
It is incumbent upon us to encourage the federal and state governments when they get things right and to encourage our security agencies and military when they cultivate the courage and take up the the initiative and fight the evil that has plagued our land just as it is important for us to tell them when they get things wrong.
I sincerely hope that the governors of the states of the South and other parts will also cultivate the political will to take the sort of drastic measures that have been taken by the North Western governors in order to save lives.
One of the most innovative and effective measures that has been taken which is unique to Zamfara and which I hear will also be introduced in some of the other North Western states at the soonest is the shutting down of all communication networks within the state.
This has totally crippled the terrorists and their kidnapping operations and it has worked wonders.
The fact that the Minister of Communcatiins, Dr. Isa Pantami, can implement such measures at the behest of the Governor of Zamfara and help in this way speaks volumes for him.
No other minister has dealt such a heavy blow to the terrorists over the last six years and none has cultivated the sense of urgency to do so.
No matter what anyone says, they cannot take this from Isa Pantami. On this matter he has done very well indeed.
The truth that this measure and policy alone has dealt a death blow to banditry and kidnapping in Zamfara and the only thing left to do is to send in the security forces to kill the terrorists which, I have been reliably informed, they are now doing with relative ease.
Pantami has done well here and few can deny it. I commend his courage as I do Matawalle’s.
Those that believe that this policy ought to be terminated and that want the communication lines reconnected at the soonest can best be described as the enemies of Nigeria and the friends of terror.
They seek to undermine our security, divide our country, profit from terror, shed the blood of the innocent and take the lives of our people for no just cause.
They want to take us back to the dark days of unchallenged terror and carnage and they wish to push our nation over the brink and into the hellish inferno of a second civil war.
Worse still they are agents of foreign governments who’s agenda is to utterly destroy our country and turn us into the laughing stock of the world.
We know who they are and we will expose them soon.
For now we must focus on encouraging those that are doing the right thing, that have risen to the occassion and that have taken the bull by the horns.
I will stand shoulder to shoulder with anyone or any group of people that will fight the terrorists and send them to hell where they belong and that will seek to save the lives of Nigerians and restore peace and sanity in our land.
Kudos to all those involved in this noble initiative and to those that are still sitting on the fence I say the following:
Wake up, rise up to the occassion, grow some balls, enter the field of battle and join hands with others regardless of party affiliation, tribe or faith and let us save Nigeria together.
May God help us all.
