Mohammed Bala Dan-Alli is the Vice President of Fulbe Development Association of Nigeria (FULDAN), the umbrella body of the Fulani ethnic nationality in Nigeria. He also heads the Kebbi State chapter of the association. He speaks to AYODELE AJOGE in Birnin-Kebbi on insecurity ravaging the country.
The spate of insecurity appears unending in Nigeria. Where exactly have we got it wrong as a country?
In the last interview I granted you, I said there was a great danger in the offing. I While some people are saying the bandits terrorising the country are Nigerians, others are saying they are not. All the same, we are about losing total control of the situation. Before, we used to know when bandits were planning to attack a community, but now it is a different game, as they now invade schools and whisk away pupils into the bush. Unlike before, children now toil in captivity for weeks and months, with no one making frantic efforts to rescue them or worry about the condition they may be in the bush. It is nothing, but an unfortunate situation we have found ourselves in. The Nigeria government needs to adopt a new strategy to combat this act as quickly as possible.
After the kidnap of students at the Federal Government College, Birnin-Yauri, Fulani leaders assembled at the Kebbi State College of Nursing auditorium to support the state government in its bid to end banditry, kidnapping and other crimes. As a leader of FULDAN, what is your position on this?
Concerning the gathering of Fulani in the state, the mistake made was that it was only one group, Miyetti Allah, that was invited. All other groups like ours were not invited to the meeting. This implies that they invited only one section of the Fulani ethnic bloc, which comprises six groups in the state. I am not surprised because whenever they are calling for a meeting of this nature, they always go for Miyetti Allah alone. Secondly, the FGC Birnin-Yauri kidnapping issue has taken longer than expected. The way the Kebbi State Government reacted to the abduction initially was as if the children would not spend more than two days in captivity. But now it is getting to two months, if not more. This shows that there is a big problem requiring a roundtable discussion.
There was a rumour that most of the female students in captivity have been married out to various bandits’ leaders. How possible can this be?
This is possible because the female children are young and can easily be brain-washed, including the male ones. Even if the rumour is one of the propagandas employed by them or it is true, no one can actually know. We don’t know whether the girls are cohabiting with the bandits, or do we know their current health situation? But the situation is very pathetic. From a boarding school into the bush, then to marriage. It is indeed very pathetic, extremely bad.
Just two weeks ago, the state government donated 10 Hilux vehicles and 30 motorcycles to the Army to curtail the menace of bandits across the state. DO you see solution in this effort?
It was an important way forward. With it, the government has shown commitment. But if bandits could use 200 or 300 motorcycles to attack a community and the government is buying just 30 motorcycles, looking at the ratio, it means the bandits are wealthier than the government. But assuming the government has bought 5, 000 motorcycles and mobilised 5, 000 military men to clear the bandits’ hideouts, we can say the government has shown very serious commitment.
Currently, there is serious food insecurity in the country as prices of food stuff have risen exorbitantly; people have attributed this to bandits’ attacks on farmers and farmlands, what is your take on this?
In Kebbi State, there is no such situation apart from Danko-wassagu area, where there was such an attack initially. But we thank God that people are now going back to their farms there. But despite this, one can still not attribute the current state of food insecurity in the country to banditry, because if you visit the markets in Kebbi State, for instance, you will discover that foodstuffs are available, but very costly. This is due to the economic situation, which is biting harder in the country.
Some have argued that the high cost of livestock was due to bandits’ rustling of animals, do you agree with this?
Rustling may play its own role, but high inflation rate in the land is another big factor. The price of everything has gone up, out of reach of the common people. There is even a hike in fuel price and it is responsible for the high cost of livestock, because the animals have to be moved from one point to another. And once food prices are high, prices of other commodities will go up. If you must sell your cattle to buy food, you must sell it high. This is the main issue, though banditry may be a contributory factor.
You said earlier that the government always recognises only Miyetti Allah in all its deliberations, knowing full well that there are five other Fulani Associations in Kebbi State. How did you mean?
It is a matter of focus and not an issue of numbers. There are those of us in other groups, who are very versed and can give more contributions than those who they recognise. It is a matter of those who are supposed to be there and not the number of those who are there. When you always call on people who have nothing to add, you will always get the same result at the end of your deliberation.
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