2023: Tinubu gets Niger gov’s endorsement, donates N50m to banditry victims in state

Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and 2023 presidential aspirant, Bola Tinubu, on Thursday donated the sum of N50 million to families of victims of the recent killings by bandits on communities in Niger State this month alone.

He made the donation when he visited the state, decrying the security situation in the country and saying that it can be fixed with prayers and self-belief.

He urged Nigerians not to see the nation’s security challenges as a hopeless situation.

“We share in your grief, I am here for the people of Niger State, hearing and reading of disasters, banditry and cattle rustling every day, just like what happened on Wednesday again,” he said.

In his remarks, Governor Abubakar Bello endorsed Tinubu’s presidential aspirations.

While receiving Tinubu at the Niger State Government House, he said he would want to see the former Lagos State governor lay the kind of foundation he laid for the massive transformation in Lagos for Nigeria.

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“Lagos is a country within a country, and we saw the foundation you laid there, we are looking forward to seeing you replicate it for Nigeria,” he said.

He appreciated Tinubu for sympathising with the state government and people over the incessant banditry attacks.

Speaking on insecurity, Bello said, “Where are we safe, in a place of worship, people can be killed. We are not dealing with human beings, but people whose hearts have been cemented for evil, no amount of talking or dialogue can change them.

“Recently, they went to a village while they were observing their early morning prayers. They locked the door and started shooting indiscriminately, killing 18 and only those that forced the door open survived and a few days later they did the same in another village.”

He pleaded with the Federal Government to change its approach to the ongoing war against banditry and terrorism, calling for a technologically driven warfare, rather than the conventional approach.

He said, “We don’t fight conventional warfare. Let’s use technology even though it is expensive, the situation can be addressed that way

“The era of sending soldiers to the forest is over when we can deploy drones to monitor the movement of bandits and hit target effortlessly.”