Bauchi State Governor, Bala Mohammed, has cried out to the federal government not to abandon the state in the fight against banditry as well as infrastructural development just because it is ruled by the opposition People’s Democratic Party, PDP.
This was as he bemoaned banditry activities in Bauchi, stating that the state was now being overwhelmed by bandits.
The governor said this in his speech when he received the Bauchi State Council of Emirs, who paid him a courtesy visit at the Exco Chamber of the Government House on Wednesday.
He said that the fight against bandits and terrorists within the neighbouring states has led to the influx of unscrupulous elements in Bauchi who are disturbing the peace of the state.
“We cannot be left out because we are in the opposition; we have to be in the mainstream. Nothing works in Nigeria without Bauchi. We are controlling the balance of power, the balance of tradition, and the balance of knowledge, and with people like you, I am calling on the Federal Government not to ignore us because we are in the PDP. We are a state, and we are ready to work with the federal government.”
“Some of the infrastructures that will help us have been left out. I want you, the emirs, to talk to the new president about how we need the railways to be revived from Enugu to Maiduguri. This is the first railway route, but it has been abandoned. Even our road from Akwanga to Jos to Bauchi to Gombe is bad.
“But we want to express our gratitude to His Excellency, the Vice President, on behalf of His Excellency, the President, Bola Tinubu, who pledged to build the road between Bauchi and Gombe because the road is totally bad. We will make time with you to go and thank Mr. President for that and to ask for other things.
“With regards to internal security, I am glad to inform you that we have established a Ministry of Internal Security that will partner with the Federal Government just to drive the issue of providing internal security. We have our own vigilante that is working with established security.
“Other states are moving ahead; we have one of the largest populations in the region, and so with the activities of the Federal Government in other parts of the geopolitical zones, the bandits are coming to Bauchi.
“We will have to go the extra mile to make sure we checkmate them. We are doing that, but certainly, we’re getting overwhelmed, and that is why we call on the Federal Government to help us and to come to our aid, to do that thing that they are doing in the north-west, so that, as we have always been a sanctuary of peace, we’ll maintain that status.
“The Emir of Katagum is one Emir that is known to always go out at night patrolling. I want the other emirs to emulate him and do what he is doing—not that they are not doing it, but you are uncommon in terms of your own forthrightness.
“We will try to exercise restraint and patience with your district heads and with the emirs. Even if we remove or punish any member of the traditional institution, we are doing it with a lot of pain. I don’t like it, but we have to do it when there is apparent disobedience to the rules of engagement of emirs, traditional rulers, and so on.
“We are just taking a minimal number to make an example out of them. We cannot afford to punish all the people who are transgressing; we’re just making sure that we are trying to bring remorse to put people on course, but we are doing this with a lot of apology and regret. We don’t like touching the institution because that institution is the symbol of our togetherness,” he said.
