Lukarawa Threat: Sokoto Braces, Maintains Development Strides

By Louis Achi

Last week, the Defence Headquarters confirmed the emergence of Lukarawa, a new deadly terrorist group in Sokoto and Kebbi states, threatening critical governance strides in these subnational enclaves. But Governor Ahmad Aliyu of Sokoto State is clearly unshaken and pressing on with his development agenda as he proactively interfaces with the federal government.

In a recent interview, Sokoto State’s Commissioner of Lands, Housing, Survey, and Town Planning, Barrister Nasiru Aliyu Dan Tsoho succinctly captured the core essence of Governor Ahmad Aliyu Sokoto: “He is a very demanding workaholic who is in hurry to change the story of our dear state.”

But it would appear that a convergence or conspiracy of forces – political (ex-Governor Tambuwal and his proxies), natural (flooding), and now extra insecurity (Lukarawa) are poised to derail Governor Aliyu’s compelling 9-point agenda which he set sail with to change the Sokoto story.

But these forces apparently misread the innate abilities and capacity of the unassuming, youthful state chief executive who hides his outer affable demeanor behind an inner steel that has enabled him leapfrog many challenges to capture the Caliphal enclave’s top job under the astute mentorship of Sokoto’s political leader and sage, Senator Aliyu Magatakarda Wamakko.

As it were, beyond the extant subsisting security challenges, the recent entrance of Lukarawas into the basket of governance and economic hurdles surely will test the mettle of any leader. But without real tests none can genuinely claim to be a leader.

A few days after the Defence Headquarters formally confirmed the emergence of a new terrorist group known as ‘Lukarawas’ in the North-western part of the country, Sokoto and Kebbi states more specifically, at least 15 people were killed in an attack by the new terror group on Mera Village in Augie Local Government Area of Kebbi State, neighboring to Sokoto State.

Nafiu Abubakar, spokesperson for the Kebbi State Police Command, said the attack occurred around 2 p.m. last Friday. “The terrorists attacked the village around 2 p.m. on Friday,” and that a significant number of cows were also rustled during the assault.

On his part, Ahmed Rufai, spokesperson for the Sokoto State police command, said the armed group operates in five local government areas in Sokoto, including Gudu, Tangaza, Binji, Illela, and one other LGA. Rufai described the group as heavily armed with “sophisticated weapons.”

On the same day, the Defence Headquarters (DHQ) in Abuja issued a statement declaring nine suspected members of the group wanted. Edward Buba, director of defence media operations, explained the Lakurawas group had begun infiltrating northern Sokoto and Kebbi from neighbouring Niger Republic and Mali.

Explaining how the terrorists found their way to Sokoto and Kebbi, Buba who explained that “The Lukarawas are affiliated to terrorists from the Sahel, particularly from Mali and Niger republics,” said they emerged from the Niger after the coup that led to the breakdown of military cooperation between Nigeria and Niger.

According to him, prior to the coup, there were joint border operations with Nigerien security forces which kept the terrorists at bay, but they cashed in on the breakdown to penetrate Nigeria.

It could be recalled that last week, the Sokoto State Government while receiving participants of Course 33 of the National Defence College (NDC) Abuja, who were on a study tour in the state, had raised alarm over the emergence of the new terrorist group in the state. On behalf of Governor Aliyu, Deputy Governor Alhaji Idris Mohammed noted the development comes at a time when the state is intensifying efforts to tackle banditry and other forms of crime.

Not one to allow the grass grow under its feet, the Sokoto State Government has made it clear it is working tirelessly in close collaboration with relevant security agencies to counter the threats posed by the Lakurawas group. Governor Aliyu voiced the state government’s optimism that the insights from the National Defence College study tour would shed light on this new security challenge and help in formulating effective measures to ensure peace and the safety of residents.

It’s noteworthy that the proactive administration of Governor Ahmad has prioritised security in its agenda. It has created a local community corp – the Sokoto State Community Guard Corps – to complement the federal security agencies in safeguarding the terrorized communities.

Being indigenes of the areas of their deployment, members of the corps were specifically charged to help the security agencies in gathering intelligence, a critical part of the war against terrorism.

The administration has also heavily invested aiding the building of military bases and provided other logistics support to the security agencies because the victims are its citizens. It’s no secret that sub-national administrations lack the constitutional, coercive power to directly confront armed non-state actors.

The Sokoto State Government has also upscaled the allowances for the security forces operating in the state and provided the agencies with critical logistics support.

Governor Aliyu’s 9-point agenda includes – education, health, water, agriculture, security, youth empowerment, local government autonomy, religious affairs, and economy. One key governance agenda is security out of the fundamental appreciation that without security no human progress could be meaningfully sustained.

The governor’s adroit security priority reinforced at the backend by Senator Wamakko did not escape the attention of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. It could be recalled that Mr. President on September 1, ordered his Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, and the military chiefs to relocate to Sokoto State as part of efforts to rid the state and the entire north-west of rampant terrorism.

Meanwhile, on the heels of Lukarawa’s emergence, the Acting Chief of Army Staff, COAS, Lt. General Olufemi Oluyede, has flown immediately to Sokoto on a maiden operational tour of the state to obtain first-hand counter-insurgency operation information and assess the security situation and challenges of the troops.

According to the Director, Army Public Relations, Major-General Onyema Nwachukwu, the acting COAS arrived Sokoto and proceeded to Forward Operations Base Tangaza and 248 Battalion in Illela, where he received briefs on the security situation from the General Officer Commanding 8 Division, Ibikunle Ajose, a brigadier general.

Addressing the troops at Tangaza and Illela, the acting COAS assured them of his full support and encouragement to decisively deplete the activities of terrorists and insurgents in their respective areas of responsibility and the North West zone in general.

The north-west is arguably Nigeria’s most terrorised region with four of the region’s seven states among the top five states with the highest number of kidnap incidents between July 2023 and June 2024.

Zamfara, Katsina and Kaduna recorded the highest numbers, with Sokoto coming fifth behind Abuja in fourth, according to the report by SBM Intelligence, a market intelligence, security analysis and strategic consulting firm. The presidential directive is part of an intensified effort to rid the North-west of the menace of banditry, kidnapping and terrorism. The emergence of the Lakurawas simply upscales the challenge.

President Tinubu’s wisdom in choosing Sokoto as the jump-off point in confronting insecurity in the North-west zone speaks to his deeper appreciation of the state’s strategic importance when joggling the Northern and Nigeria’s security algorithm.

Emerging from his nifty management of the Sokoto State’s costly flood woes and successfully fencing off needless political distractions being cooked by former Governor Aminu Tambuwal and his quirky proxies, Lakurawas’ emergence will certainly further challenge Governor Aliyu’s leadership nous.

The emerging, enlightened multipartisan consensus in Sokoto State is that the needless political rivalry choreographed by Senator Aminu Tambuwal (who is still reportedly eyeing the presidency) through his shadowy proxies is negatively impacting the state, governance wise, and should be immediately discontinued.

But the governor has made it clear that when he accepted the overwhelming mandate of Sokoto folks to lead them, he clearly was in for the long haul and would honour and earn their trust to the very best of his ability.

Clearly, Sokoto State means business.