Prof Usman Yusuf, a former Chief Executive of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), has told his story of accompanying renowned Islamic cleric Ahmad Abubakar Gumi to meet with bandit commanders in the forest.
They met with six different bandit commanders, according to Yusuf, including Bello Turji, who is accused of killing thousands of civilians in the north.
Yusuf made the announcement at the Interfaith Dialogue Forum for Peace’s 4th Annual Peace Conference and General Assembly, which took place in Abuja this week (IDFP).
There were 120 Muslim and Christian clerics in attendance.
Yusuf revealed that the bandit commanders have educated several children from 10 to 12 years old who have become completely addicted to heavy narcotics and work for them.
He said, “When we went into the forests, we met all these criminals; we met Turji, Dogo, and four other bandit commanders. In Zamfara where we started, banditry is the beginning of the cancer of the current insecurity.
“As we journeyed to see Turji, he was surrounded by a battalion of his recruits. They were all dressed in military fatigue but operated deep into the forests.
“We saw kid-soldiers between the ages of 10 – 12 years. They have become bandits who are armed to the teeth, and are even killing each other.”
He added, “When we went to the forest in Niger and other Northern states, deep into the forests, we saw with our eyes kids who were shooting under the influence of drugs.
“On the way into the forest in Niger, in one of the villages we passed through, I said we should stop over by one chemist shop. I went into the drugstore to check out what they sold.
“Behold, these are the drugs of choice for these bandits; codeine, tramadol, Pentazocine, intravenous drugs, Sudrex which is paracetamol and hydro-caffeine, Boska and marijuana. I found all these drugs in the little chemist shop in that village. The chemist shop owner is neither a local drug attendant nor a pharmacist.
“In the heart of the forests, I saw these kids shooting intravenous drugs and smoking marijuana. All the ransom they are paid they used to purchase drugs and to buy arms. Go across the border in Niger republic, they buy arms worth hundreds of millions of Naira. When you see them, you will be forced to ask yourself where is the money (ransom)? They spend it on drugs and arms.
“Each of the six warlords that with us from across the states, their respective convoys consist of about 200-300 motorcycles carrying three persons on each one.”
Yusuf saw that the majority of the robbers he encountered in the woods during their travels to the woods were armed with sophisticated weaponry.
While urging an united effort to combat Nigeria’s drug problem, he stated that the country was in far worse shape than many people, including the authorities, believed.
According to him, “Drugs are fueling the insecurity witnessed all across this country. I call on the NDLEA instead of staying only in the airport looking for cocaine that is going to America or Europe, it should work with the governors and make sure that no chemist is selling drugs like tramadol, pentazocine and others. Drugs are fueling all the criminality in the society, not just banditry, but also Boko Haram, ISWAP, and IPOB/ESN. We are in more serious trouble than we think.
Yusuf also revealed that Gumi’s group witnessed an ongoing civil war among the bandits’ several camps in the woods.
“In the forests, more leaders of bandits have been killed by fellow bandits than by security agents,” he said, adding that “We cannot pretend there’s no insecurity threatening this nation. We have been all over this country looking for solutions.”
However, he explained that because the bandits in the forest have deep respect for the clergy, religious leaders can play vital roles in resolving the nagging insecurity in the land.
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