General News
Bandit Leader Bello Turji Writes Buhari And Others, Seeks Dialogue And Reveals Only Sheikh Gumi Understands And Sympathizes With Them
Bello Turji, leader of the group of bandits who are reponsible for the attack which claimed the lives of 23 passengers in Sokoto state and other killings in the North-West region, has reportedly written a letter to President Muhammadu Buhari; Zamfara State Governor, Bello Matawalle and the Emir of Shinkafi.
Premium Times reported that the three-page open letter which was written in Hausa language with a salutation in Arabic, has been authenticated by experts.
Bello in the letter said he’s ready to surrender all his arms if the five conditions he listed are met.
These include dissolution of unofficial vigilante groups in the North-west, a meeting with traditional rulers and religious leaders, a stop to the ‘marginalisation’ of Fulanis; honest discussions between bandits, traditional rulers and politicians, and the participation of first-class emirs in a security meeting.
He said;
“Unnecessary Killing of people will be over. Because unofficial vigilante members would just see innocent person and kill … We need to be seen as people with equal rights like any other person else. We’re being killed unnecessarily. We’re being relegated to the background. We should be allowed to return to our houses and live normal lives. We also want to have a meeting with our traditional rulers and religious leaders to iron out issues.
“… we’re not fighting the government or trying to form our government. No! We’re just tired of the marginalisation of the Fulanis; especially in the markets. So, if you people need peace to reign, we should do it for the sake of God. And for normalcy to return, we want a situation whereby no one will be cheated.”
In the letter which was signed with the bandit leader’s full name, Muhammadu Bello Turji Kachalla Fakai, it was also stated that Islamic cleric, Ahmed Gumi, first-class emirs and notable Islamic scholars should be invited for a summit with the bandits.
He added;
“… especially Sheikh Ahmed Abubakar Gumi; we know him because he came here and preached to us and we’ve witnessed the importance of peace due to his counsel, hence, the need for us to do our best for peace to return to our land.”
The letter which was also published by Daily Trust, reads in full;
“We are grateful to God who has given us this opportunity to bring this message to the Emir of Shinkafi, through the Governor of Zamfara state, Alh Mohammed Bello Matawalle (Baraden Maradun) and to the President Mohammed Buhari.
“This is a letter (originally written in Hausa as seen below) from Mohammed Bello Turji Kachalla, the one we all know about.
“Having said that, I want the Emir of Shinkafi, the governor of Zamfara and the president, to look up to Allah and his Prophet.
“The purpose of this letter is as follows:
1. The killings of people going on which is not being publicised, the killings by bandits, herdsmen, kidnapping for ransom and even by security agents are our making. All these will come to an end by the grace of Allah. The government will have to play its part to ensure that this is achieved. As long as ethnicity and tribalism are eliminated, we need to all remain as one big family and forgive one another as Allah commands.
“2. Your highness, we would like to have a sit down with the traditional rulers in this country and also the religious leaders. If this is done, I Mohammed Bello Turji Kachalla, will make sure to disarm all my men and hand over all our arms to the government of Nigeria. As long as the government promises to take care of us the way it is taking care of the rest of the country and stop the stigmatisation of my people.
“3. Your highness, I want to assure you that we are not in contention with the government of Nigeria and we do not want any other country apart from this, we are not seeking power of any kind, rather the ugly things we Fulanis are facing in this country have pushed us to react the way we do and made us want to defend ourselves to the detriment of the peace of the nation.
“4. Your highness, we are not thieves and we don’t mean to harm anyone. This letter is not borne out of deception and we would not want to be deceived. Everything should be done in transparency for Allah’s sake and for the sake of the peace of our nation. So we can go back to the way we were in the past. We should all be law-abiding and allow the security agents to do their job and punish anyone found wanting. No form of arms would be seen with anyone except in the hands of the security agents as it’s supposed to be.
“5. Your highness, this is our last request. Just as we said earlier, we will like to make sure that all traditional rulers and all our Muslim leaders, most especially Sheikh Ahmad Abubakar Gumi, to be present at this meeting. This is because he is the only one who understands us and he has been paying us visits to sympathize with us. He has been preaching to us and we have seen the effectiveness of his messages in our lives. We only want the peaceful existence of everyone in this country.
“May Allah give us all the strength to keep these promises without fail.
“This letter is from Mohammed Bello Turji Kachalla.”
At 31, Lagos-born Espago is redefining what it means to be a late bloomer in the Nigerian music
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Rising artist Derriq isn’t just making music for entertainment; he’s building a legacy rooted in culture, resilience, and pride. The Lagos-based Afro-soul and Afrobeats singer has his eyes set on something bigger than streaming numbers: putting his hometown of Benin City on the global creative map is his dream.
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For interviews and press: derriqmusic@gmail.com
Good morning! Here is today’s summary from Nigerian Newspapers:
1. President Bola Tinubu will address the nation in a broadcast today, Sunday, August 4, 2024. Mr Ajuri Ngelale, Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, announced this in a statement, on Saturday, saying the broadcast would hold at 7am.
2. The Commissioner of Police in Borno State, Yusuf Lawal, on Saturday confirmed the killing of four persons along Baga Road in Maiduguri, Borno State during the nationwide #EndBadGoverment protest. He said Boko Haram elements infiltrated the protesters and killed four persons on Thursday with explosives at a filling station.
3. Many persons have been feared killed while others sustained injuries as hoodlums clashed with security operatives in Kano. It was gathered that Rijiyar Lemo, Kurna to Bachirawa areas in Fagge Local Government, Kofar Nassarawa in Kano municipal and Unguwa Uku area of Tarauni Local Government are the worst hit areas.
4. The leadership of the organised labour, on Saturday, warned the Nigeria Police Force and other security forces to stop what it described as a “massacre” of protesters carrying out nationwide demonstrations against hunger in the land.
5. Leading Human Rights group, Amnesty International Nigeria, has said over 50 protesters were arrested in Abuja on the third day of the demonstration against hardship in the land.
6. Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has urged the police and other security agencies to stop shooting and killing protesters demanding good governance in Nigeria. Atiku in a statement on Saturday, questioned the professionalism of the security agencies in the handling of the ongoing demonstrations.
7. Some of the organisers and supporters of the ongoing protest have set up pages to raise over N4bn through GoFundMe, a popular online crowdfunding platform. A check on Saturday showed that a total of N4.1bn had been benchmarked to be donated through accounts created by three GoFundMe users.
8. Tragedy struck again in Imo State on Saturday evening when some gunmen reportedly shot dead the President-General of Umucheke Okwe autonomous community in Onuimo Local Government Area of Imo State, Hyginus Ohazurike. Six village heads from the autonomous community were also allegedly killed by the gunmen.
9. The Federal Capital Territory Commissioner of Police, Bennett Igweh has said his men were not responsible for the death of a teenager in the Kubwa area of the FCT. In a viral video, a man claimed that police, while dispersing protesters, shot dead a teenager in the Kubwa area.
10. The Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Atiku Bagudu has said President Bola Tinubu is keeping an eye on the ongoing #EndBadGovernance demonstrations across the country.
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