The State Police Command has redeployed one of its Divisional Police Officers following allegations of conniving with bandits terrorising the Kaura-Namoda area of the state.
The development was made known in a statement issued yesterday by the Command’s Public Relations Officer, Mohammed Shehu, yesterday.
Shehu noted that no formal complaints had been lodged against the unnamed DPO.
Mohammed Shehu, the command’s public relations officer, in a statement on Monday, said no formal complaints have been lodged against the unnamed DPO.
The statement reads, “The attention of the Zamfara State Police Command has been drawn to a viral video trending on social media platforms wherein the communities of Kungurki village, in Kaura Namoda LGA, accused the DPO of Kaura Namoda Division of conniving with recalcitrant armed bandits who were making life unbearable for the people,” he said.
“Available records at the command revealed no formal complaint against the DPO in respect of the allegation.
“However, the command enjoins members of the public, especially the aggrieved community, that any person or group with credible evidence against the DPO, should come to the Police Command Headquarters and assist in the ongoing investigation.
“The DPO, as a custodian of peace and tranquility, has the mandate to interact and engage with the two warring Hausa and Fulani bandit communities to a dialogue so as to strengthen the ongoing peace process of the state government.” The statement added.
Meanwhile, Shehu said the Commissioner of Police in the state has redeployed the DPO to the police ecommand headquarters as OC provost, while Umar Abdullahi, assistant commissioner of police, has been appointed as acting DPO of the Division.
The police urged members of the public to help them in intelligence gathering by working in collaboration with their officers in the state.
The Command’s PRO also urged members of the public with credible evidence against the former DPO to contact the acting DPO through his phone number– 08162793939.
Zamfara State is one of the hotspots of banditry in the Northwest region of the country.
The Governor of the State, Bello Matawalle, has been at the vanguard of the campaign of amnesty for bandits.
He has entered into peace talks with the bandits and vowed nothing will stop the negotiation.
However, despite his negotiation with bandits, hundreds of schoolgirls were abducted by gunmen, suapected, to be bandits over two weeks at Government Girls’ College in Jangebe area of the state.
Most of the girls have since been released.
Matawalle had accused some unnamed politicians of being behind the banditry in the state.
He said they are bent on sabotaging his peace talks.
