Rid our Forests of Criminals, Abubakar Challenges Army

Segun Awofadeji in Bauchi

Bauchi State Governor Mohammed Abdullahi Abubakar has again challenged the Nigerian Army and other security agencies to intensify efforts and flush out insurgents, kidnappers, cattle rustlers, and all other criminal elements seeking refuge in Bauchi State forests, particularly those fleeing military actions in Sambisa, Falgore and Zamfara forests.

The governor, who threw this challenge when he received the General officer Commanding 3rd Division, Major General Benjamin Ahanotu at the Government House, Bauchi Sunday lamented that the forests that surround Bauchi State are gradually being taken advantage of by criminals.

Governor Abubakar explained that his administration was disturbed by activities of criminals in and around the communities surrounding the forests, the reason which he said necessitated the procurement and presentation of motor cycles to the armed forces in the state to help them penetrate and flush out the criminals seeking sanctuary.

The governor recalled that at the inception of his administration, some of the major security challenges rocking the state were banditry and youth restiveness in addition to the spillover effects of insurgency that bedevilled most states that surround Bauchi State.

Governor Abubakar expressed happiness that with the combined efforts of the state and federal governments through the security agencies, the situation of the state has been smoothened.

Details later…