The Zamfara State chapter of the All Progressives Congress on Thursday praised President Bola Tinubu for ignoring calls for the dismissal of his Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, stating that the allegation he sponsored some of the bandits terrorising the state was unfounded.
The party also urged the current governor, Dauda Lawal, to consider deploying both the kinetic and non-kinetic approaches used by his predecessor to combat the worsening insecurity in the state.
The appeal came two days after hundreds of women and youths from the state staged a protest at the Department of State Services headquarters in Abuja over the heightened insecurity in Zamfara.
The protesters also blamed the immediate past governor of the state for the activities of the bandits, which they claimed were a result of his alleged collaboration with them during his administration.
The aggrieved individuals, who arrived in about 12 long buses, were restricted from accessing the premises of the security agency.
Addressing journalists in Abuja, the Zamfara APC Youth Coordinator, Ubaidullah Kaura, expressed concern that Lawal, who won the election on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party, had failed to build on the progress made by his predecessor, particularly in the area of security.
Kaura further stressed that allegiance to different political parties should not be an excuse for not seeking continuity in governance.
He said, “We want to use this opportunity to extend our gratitude to President Bola Tinubu for trusting Matawalle and allowing him to continue serving as the Minister of State for Defence in his cabinet.
“Those people going from the EFCC to DSS alleging that Matawalle is involved with bandits and demanding his sacking are sponsored groups. We thank God the presidency, through Bayo Onanuga, has denied this. Even the NSA to the President, Nuhu Ribadu, has also cleared the air after his investigation.
“Under Matawalle’s administration, security was tackled effectively with a balanced approach that combined both kinetic and non-kinetic strategies. We call upon Governor Lawal to revisit the handover notes left by the minister and do all that is necessary to tackle insecurity in the state.”