Security agencies have been ordered to shoot at sight anyone found to be illegally carrying firearms in Zamfara State.
Governor Abdulaziz Yari of Zamfara State gave the order on Friday quoting the authority of President Muhammadu Buhari.
The governor also declared that anyone found to be associating with bandits should also be dealt with in the same manner as those carrying arms.
“This is an order from the president and from the governor of the state,” he said when he visited Anka on a condolence visit.
“We cannot continue to watch criminals as a parallel government, doing what they want and carrying sophisticated firearms, maiming and killing innocent citizens in the state,” he added.
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It would be recalled that more than 30 persons were on Thursday buried in Bawan Daji Village of Anka Local Government Area of Zamfara, following the attack carried out by gunmen in the village.
The bandits attacked the area after some members of the community held a meeting to discuss measures to be taken against the bandits during the 2018 farming season.
The bandits had earlier threatened that there would be no farming activities in the area in this year’s rainy season.
During the condolence visit the governor also ordered the removal of the district and village heads of five communities with immediate effect.
The heads were said to be harbouring bandits carrying out the massacre.
Speaking on the occasion, the Emir of Anka, Attahiru Ahmad, said more security personnel committed to ensuring safety of lives and property should be deployed to the area.
“What we are facing is armed banditry by trigger-happy criminals who attack innocent rural dwellers and steal their cash and property,” he said.