Former governor of Sokoto, Alhaji Attahiru Bafarawa has denied claim by bandit leader Bello Turji that he is among the forces fuelling terrorism and banditry in the Northern part of the country. He accused Turji of being a tool to soil his name.
Read Also: Allegations of A Terrorist: Two former governors
fueling insecurity
The militant leader had taken to Facebook to accuse Bafarawa
and another former Zamfara governor of being the oxygen behind the spiraling
insecurity in the north, but did not give details of their involvement in the
atrocious acts now afflicting lives and property in that part of the country.
However, Bafarawa, who ruled Sokoto State between 1999 and
2007, told Vanguard in a telephone interview that he had never supported any
form of violence or criminality against anyone or the state.
Alhaji Bafarawa, who expressed shock over the said claim by
the bandit leader, told Vanguard in an interview that there was nothing like
banditry or terrorism in Sokoto or Zamfara State when he left office in year
2007 and did not know anyone called Bello Turji.
The former governor, who founded the Democratic People’s
Party and flew its presidential flag in the 2007 election, said that Turji must
be day-dreaming by mentioning his name among terrorism sponsors in Nigeria and
wondered why he should be involved in such action almost 20 years after leaving
the office the governor.
Bafarawa said: “Where was Bello Turji when I was governor of
Sokoto State and how old was he then? I had nothing to do with him and I still
have nothing to do with him and his cohorts.
“What do I stand to benefit from banditry or terrorism at my
age?
“It is shocking to me that a character like that is spewing
pure lies against my name. He is just being used by some forces to lie from the
pit of hell against me.
“I remain irrevocably committed to peace and stability of my
state and Nigeria and can never venture into anything that can destabilize the
society.
“It is absolute rubbish that Turji is talking about and I
know that he is only trying to use my name to satisfy the interest of those
goading him to make this unfounded claim against me,” the former presidential
candidate said.
It will be recalled that Turji had in a viral video, which
surfaced on Sunday, accused past political leadership in Zamfara and Sokoto
states of laying the foundation for the region’s long-running insecurity.
The bandit specifically named the former Sokoto governor and
his former Zamfara State counterpart as being behind the rising insecurity and
called for their arrest and investigation.
“We openly say that former governors of Zamfara and Sokoto
states are responsible for the calamities that befell these states,” Turji
claimed.
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