Youth Block major Sokoto road over rising insecurity

Residents who fled from their communities in Bodinga Local Government Area of Sokoto State as a result of insecurity staged a protest on Friday.

The protesters, mostly youths, blocked the busy Sokoto–Yauri–Birnin Kebbi highway, demanding urgent government intervention to end the persistent attacks on their communities.

They set bonfires and placed logs across the highway, causing a major traffic gridlock and leaving hundreds of commuters stranded for hours before security operatives dispersed them and reopened the road at about noon.

When Daily Trust visited the town, scores of displaced families were found taking refuge in school, mosque and private homes.

A resident, who requested anonymity, told Daily Trust that the protest was aimed at drawing the attention of authorities to the worsening insecurity in the area.

“We can no longer remain silent while our people are being killed and forced to flee their homes. Many displaced families have taken refuge in Bodinga town because they have nowhere else to go,” he said.

An eyewitness who witnessed the protest from the beginning told Daily Trust that the protesters shouted at the Speaker of the Sokoto State House of Assembly, Tukur Bala Bodinga, and pelted his convoy with stones as it approached the protest scene.

However, he dismissed reports that the Speaker’s official vehicle or any vehicle in his convoy was damaged.

“There was shouting and stone-throwing, but no vehicle had its windscreen smashed or was damaged,” the eyewitness said.

During its visit, Daily Trust found displaced persons, including women, children and elderly residents, taking refuge in different locations across Bodinga town.

Some of the displaced persons were being sheltered at Makarantar Alhaji Sahabi Bodinga, Makarantar Dan Jeka, Makarantar Liman, Mallam Bala Mosque, the new market in Bodinga and in Sifawa town.

Residents said the displaced families began arriving in Bodinga on Wednesday after the first wave of attacks, while fresh raids from Thursday afternoon through Friday morning forced more villagers to flee.

In Sifawa, the Secretary to the Sokoto State Government, Muhammad Bello Sifawa, who hails from the town, offered his personal residence to accommodate some of the displaced families pending when they can safely return to their communities.

At one of the temporary shelters, a displaced resident from Qyaula village said gunmen invaded the community on Thursday afternoon, shooting sporadically and forcing residents to flee.

“They came shooting indiscriminately and killed some people. We escaped to save our lives, but I cannot confirm the exact number of those killed or abducted,” he said.

Residents identified the affected communities as Qyaula, Keloji, Chohi Takule, Kulodo, Kwamtsi, Danchadi, Lugge, Dabagi and Karaje villages.

According to one resident, the attackers moved from one community to another from about 2 p.m. on Thursday until the early hours of Friday, killing an unspecified number of people and forcing many others to abandon their homes.

Daily Trust observed that the Speaker of the Sokoto State House of Assembly, Tukur Bala Bodinga; the member representing Bodinga, Dange Shuni and Tureta Federal Constituency, Nasiru Shehu Bobo; the Secretary to the State Government, Muhammad Bello Sifawa; the chairman of Bodinga Local Government Area, the district head and security operatives visited the area to sympathise with victims before proceeding to the affected villages for the funeral prayers of those killed.

When contacted, the member representing Bodinga, Dange Shuni and Tureta Federal Constituency, Nasiru Shehu Bobo, said the community was still mourning the victims.

“We are in a moment of grief and are preparing for the burial of those killed. We are working with the government and security agencies to ensure our people regain their safety and security,” he said.

The Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Ahmad Rufai, said security personnel had been operating in the area since Thursday afternoon until about 3 a.m. on Friday.

He added that additional operatives had been deployed to the area to strengthen security and restore normalcy, while urging residents not to block major highways despite their grievances.

As of the time of filing this report, funeral prayers had been conducted for victim killed in Lugge village.

The latest attacks came barely a day after suspected bandits reportedly killed the Chief Imam and two others of Talluje village in Bodinga Local Government Area, highlighting the growing insecurity confronting communities in the area.

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