Senior Councillor of the Birnin-Gwari Emirate, Kaduna State Zubair Abdurrauf, has warned that Ansaru terrorist group has taken over the local government, noting that its unlikely that the election will be held there.
Abdurrauf, who spoke on a television programme yesterday, said the terrorists have established another government in the area and now tax helpless residents. He said the splinter group of notorious Boko Haram terrorist group came into Birnin-Gwari over 12 years ago under the guise of teaching the people Islamic knowledge but later turned to insurgents with abhorrence for western education.
The Senior Councillor said Birnin-Gwari, which is vast with difficult terrain and mountainous places and adjoining forest to Zamfara and other states, has since been deserted by government institutions as the insurgents sack local chiefs and enthrone their rule.
According to him, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) cant deploy its personnel to the terrorist den in Birnin-Gwari, and expressed his doubt on the possibility of the 2023 elections being held in the area.
Recall that on Monday, the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu, visited the Emir of Birnin-Gwari, Zubairu Maigwari, and promised to wipe out bandits and terrorists in Kaduna and other parts of the northern region if elected as in 2023.
The traditional councillor said the infiltration by terrorists in the area is not a question of the almajiri system but lack of coordination to ensure people are not indoctrinated with the kind of alien ideology of the Ansaru people. He said the locals now see the Ansaru terrorist sect as a messiah that protects them from marauders who rustle their cows and hijack their harvests.
He further said the Ansaru group distributes food items to locals during festivities, adding that young people join Ansaru because of poverty and neglect of the government.
This is not the first time that officials would sound the alarm of terrorist dominance in Birnin-Gwari. In May, Kaduna State Governor, Nasir el-Rufai said Boko Haram and the Ansaru terrorists are taking over the Birnin-Gwari and Giwa local government areas in the State.
Abdurrauf warned against the politicisation of the security challenges of the area and other parts of the North. He urged the government to rise up to its primary responsibility of protecting lives and property.
