A musician who praised a bandit leader popularly known as Bello Turji, in a song has incurred the wrath of Sokoto State Governor, Aminu Waziri Tambuwal.
Consequently, Tambuwal has ordered the immediate arrest of the musician, Mohammed Danshawa.
In the song, the musician, Danshawa hailed the bandit leader, describing him as “a lion, untouchable and a great leader.”
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Turji is said to be the leader of the bandit groups terrorising communities in Sokoto, Zamfara, and parts of Niger Republic.
His gang is said to be responsible for December 6 massacre in which 23 passengers were burnt alive in a bus in Isa Local Government Area of Sokoto State.
The 14-minute song was rendered in Hausa by a man who identified himself in the song as Adamu Ayuba, with the female chorus hailing Mr Turji as a hero among heroes.
Recently, MURIC released a statement, naming him as responsible for the killings in Sokoto and asking security operatives to arrest him “dead or alive.”
Three days after Mohammed Danshawa’s song hailing Bello Turji was posted online, Governor Tambuwal gave the order to apprehend the singer.
Governor Tambuwal said: “We ordered for his arrest to serve as a deterrent to others.
“This further informs why I advised that the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Nigeria to consider the best strategy to handle the insecurity situation because in those places where there are security challenges, the inhabitants are willing to be trained on weapons handling.”
Premium Times reported that one Abba Ya’u, a Kano resident, described as shocking the song released in praise of Mr Turji. Abba said it “has exposed the complicity in the fight against banditry in the area.
He said “How can a rational thinking person sing a song for a bandit who is causing mayhem, killings innocent people. To be frank with you, our people are not serious.
“This banditry will only come to an end when the community wants it to end because it is a community-based issue.”
Another Kano resident, Abbdullahi Kausi, also told the publication the government is handling the issue with a kid’s gloves, which he said has forced some residents to be supporting the bandits in return for protection.
Kausi stated that for someone to sing in praise of a known killer, it shows the problem is community-based and people need to wake up and tackle it at the community level by identifying those abetting banditry.
He added “The federal government must ensure local government autonomy by bringing the government closer to the locals with full financial autonomy. That will alleviate the suffering at the grassroots and help in tackling the issue of banditry.”
