By Abdallah el-Kurebe
ASHENEWS reports that the former Sokoto state governor, and presidential candidate of the Democratic Peoples Party (DPP) during the 2007 general elections, Attahiru Dalhatu Bafarawa has warned that banditry would get a boost if the Federal government failed to fight food insecurity.
Bafarawa states this during a chat with journalists in his country home in Sokoto on Saturday.
According to him, the current banditry in most parts of the country will be a child’s play compared to if the consequences of food insecurity are allowed by the Federal government to avail themselves.
“As it is, it is important for the leaders of Nigeria to note that insecurity is not limited to banditry. Food insecurity is worse than banditry, and the situation could be worst if the federal and state governments allowed food insecurity to take over our communities.
“The governments should do all that they can, especially in the Northeast, Northwest and North Central, and in other states where banditry seem to have settled, to fight the scourge to the end.
“Attention should also be paid in those states and regions considered to be food producers in this country, to ensure those in the communities are returned to their farms in other to produce good for citizens.
“Banditry has stopped farming activities, and most farmers have left their farming communities and returned to safer places for fear of attacks by bandits.
“If the Federal government fails to do something, one wonders what will happen in three months from now,” Bafarawa told journalists.
Speaking on the education of Nigerian children, Bafarawa urged leaders to beware of the impending problem if nothing is done to remedy the situation.
He opined that youth education should be given the topmost priority it deserves, further stating that if the youth were not adequately educates, “the consequences, added to that of the farmers will explode with more deadly consequences.
“I urge the leaders who have been given the responsibility to govern, to tackle the challenges of the education of our youths. Government should know that there is a problem,” the former governor said.
Bafarawa stressed the importance of the role of the media in drawing the attention of government to the debacle facing, especially rural communities.
“The media is important in this fight against these maladies. You are on the ground; you see what happens to the people in our rural communities; you are seeing the effect of banditry. Your reports on these happenings could give the government a clearer, and informed picture. These reports will also help government in taking sustainable action against these challenges,” he said.
