Zamfara Government proposes RUGA settlements for repentant bandits

The Zamfara State Government says it plans to build Ruga settlements for repentant bandits.

It said it already granted amnesty to all the repentant bandits who surrendered their weapons and embraced peace accord initiated by the governor, Bello Matawalle.

The Special Adviser to the governor on Public Enlightenment, Media and Publicity, Alhaji Zailani Baffa, in a statement, said “Following the amnesty arrangement, the state government has since last year granted amnesty to some bandits who were in detention at various Correctional Centres in the state just as the bandits also released some people they have kidnapped.”

“Governor Matawalle has already told the world that he has chosen dialogue as a means of ending banditry in the state and has granted amnesty to many repentant bandits. Arrangements are also in top gear to provide shelter to the repentant bandits through the construction of Ruga settlements in some parts of the state.”

He also said following the tour to the state by Sheikh Ahmad Gummi, there were so many bandits who were willing to repent and join the peace accord embarked upon by the governor.

“All the state government needs from the Federal Government is deployment of more security personnel to the state so that we can fight those recalcitrant bandits who are not ready to surrender.”

He stressed that the governor had constitutional rights to enter into dialogue with the bandits just as he had the right to grant them amnesty. “We have gone far in this arrangement and it is yielding positive results,” Baffa added.