People in the Gidan Mai Jimina and Garangozai communities in the Malumfashi Local Government Area of Katsina State are scared because suspected bandits have demanded a motorcycle and a N5 million levy, threatening serious consequences if their demands are not met.
It was learned that this new event happened just a few hours after the attackers kidnapped the village head of Gidan Mai Jimina, Malam Habibu, on Monday. They let him go after they got a motorcycle and N100,000.
Later, the gunmen went to the Garangozai community, where they are said to have kidnapped another village head, Malam Sule.
Residents said on Tuesday morning that the bandits had come back and were camped along roads that connect Gidan Tulluwa, Gangaren Rafi, and Gindin Mangwarori. They were heavily armed and making new threats.
Villagers say that the armed men have told people in the affected communities to give them N5 million and a new motorcycle by 2 p.m. on Tuesday. They warned that if they don’t, there will be serious consequences.
Many people are scared for their safety and don’t know what will happen if the demands aren’t met. The situation has caused a lot of panic.
Reports of similar levies and mass kidnappings in different parts of the state show that armed groups in the North-West are using extortion as a common tactic.
Bakastine, a security analyst and crisis journalist who shared the news on his X account, questioned why rural communities are still being attacked.
“How many more innocent people have to die before something is done?” He asked the authorities to make proactive security measures and timely protection for at-risk groups a top priority.
He also said that social and economic factors, not ideology, are the main reasons for banditry in the North-West.
In the North-West region, banditry is not so much about ideology as it is about poverty, broken rural economies, weak government, cycles of revenge, cattle rustling economies, and easy access to weapons.
A lot of people join to stay alive, protect themselves, or make money. He said, “They are able to stay strong because they have forest hideouts, local informants, ransom payments, and a steady stream of new recruits.”
Even though security operations are still going on in some parts of Katsina State, the bandits are said to still be in charge of many rural areas, which makes residents, especially farmers, even more afraid.
Farmers in the affected areas warned that if urgent action isn’t taken, ongoing insecurity could severely disrupt farming, threaten crop production, and make food less secure.
They asked both the state and federal governments to step up their security efforts in order to restore trust and protect lives and livelihoods throughout the region.
