Just In: Buhari says he has ordered police, military to be ‘ruthless’ against bandits

President Muhammadu Buhari has promised to increase the pressure in the fight against notorious bandits terrorising the northern region.

In a rare interview with Arise TV on Thursday morning monitored by NewsWireNGR, the President said he has given the military and the police the order to be ruthless against the bandits that wreaked havoc on human lives and destroyed a lot of properties.

“Same people, same culture killing each other, stealing each other cattle, burning their region and I said we are going to treat them in the language they understand,” Mr Buhari said about the bandits who have been responsible for mass kidnapping, killings and displacement of people from their homes.

“We have given the police and the military power to be ruthless. And you watch it, in a few weeks’ time they will be different.”

The President further said it is increasingly necessary to increase the pressure on the criminals because they have crippled farming in the region and when people do not farm, the society starves.

He continued, “We told them that if we keep people away from their farms, we are going to starve and the government cannot the public. If you allow hunger to come into a society, the governor would be in trouble and we don’t want to b in trouble, we are already in enough trouble.

“We will hold them and sooner or later you will see the difference.”

Nigeria’s northern region have been under siege from bandits for the past seven years.

The notorious bandits have been responsible for various killings, cattle rustling, mass kidnappings and displacement of thousands of people from their homes.