Kaduna State governor Nasir El-Rufai has said that bandits can not be seen as repentant.
Speaking on Tuesday while briefing State House correspondents after he met with President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, the Governor said he was at the State House along with the State Commissioner for Internal Security, Samuel Aruwan to brief the President on the recent attack by terrorists (bandits) on Kauran Fawa, Marke and Ruhiya of Idasu Ward of Giwa Local Government Area, Kaduna State that claimed the lives of about 40 persons.
He said that the whereabouts of the bandits are not hidden but that the military was mindful of the collateral damage it could cause the civilian community.
He said if the security forces cannot go to the bandits’ location, the state was helpless.
The governor said he asked for the intervention of the President for more deployment of security forces and a comprehensive operation.
On whether there is not intelligence to go ahead of the bandits, he said: “Yes, we receive security reports, we know a lot about the bandits and where they are and their activities.
“But you must understand that the intelligence has to be acted upon. And if the security forces are unwilling or unable to reach the locations where these bandits are, then there is nothing we can do as a state government.
“Federal security forces are not under our direct control. We support them, we work with them, the intelligence is being provided, but the truth of the matter is that our military and police are very few in number and they are overstretched.”
El-Rufai noted that whereas the security forces are doing their best but their efforts are not enough.
He added: “So, you have to understand the limitations that they face before you conclude that they are not doing enough. They are doing a lot. But is it enough? Certainly not. Much more needs to be done.
“But can they do more with the number of policemen they have and the number of soldiers? I don’t know. We need to ramp up recruitment in the Nigerian Police, we need to ramp up recruitment in the Nigerian armed forces.
“We have too few number and our armed forces are overstretched. They are operating in several states, about 32, 33 states the last time we checked, and how many are they?
“So, we must understand the constraint that they face and sympathized with them.
“But with the acquisition of more advance equipment from Jordan, China, Turkey and the United States, we expect that the kinetic capabilities of our armed forces will be greatly improved.
“So, we hope to see the end of this insecurity.”
The governor also lamented that care has to be taken in dealing with bandits to avoid collateral damage to innocent civilians.
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