Insecurity: Sokoto youths threaten self-defense

Youths in Shagari Local Government Area of Sokoto State have threatened to take up arms if security agencies fail to protect them from relentless bandit attacks.

The warning came in a statement issued by activist Bello Bala Shagari, grandson of former President Shehu Shagari, who said residents have reached their breaking point after enduring months of killings, kidnappings, and displacement that have crippled farming and livelihoods.

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According to Shagari, the communities can no longer remain passive while lives and property are destroyed daily. “We cannot keep quiet while our people are being killed and humiliated every day. Government has failed to protect us, and we may have no choice but to defend ourselves,” he declared.

The group urged both the Sokoto State Government and the Federal Government to deploy additional security personnel to Shagari and neighboring areas, stressing that residents need concrete action rather than repeated promises.

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Shagari LGA, like many rural parts of Sokoto, Zamfara, Katsina, and Kebbi, has suffered years of violent raids and kidnappings. Despite ongoing military operations, locals say they remain exposed to killings, extortion, and forced levies at the hands of bandits.