The Zamfara Good Governance Forum (ZGGF) has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to freeze federal allocations to Zamfara State and impose emergency rule.
The demand follows what the group described as Governor Dauda Lawal’s “shocking admission” of knowing the hideouts of bandit kingpins who have terrorised the state for years.
Speaking in Gusau, the Forum’s Secretary, Muhammad Ibrahim Mafara, accused the governor of betraying public trust and failing in his most basic duty to protect citizens.
“This is not just recklessness; it is a direct admission of complicity,” Mafara told reporters.
“If a sitting governor openly claims knowledge of where terrorists live and operate, yet does nothing to stop them, then he stands guilty before the people.”
The Forum pointed out that Governor Lawal receives over ₦600 million every month in security votes, yet Zamfara communities remain under siege.
Mafara said this amounted to “feeding criminals from Government House” while innocent citizens are slaughtered.
He further accused the governor of presiding over a corrupt system in which local government funds are siphoned off, leaving council chairmen holed up in Gusau instead of serving their communities.
According to the Forum, Lawal’s recent remarks were an attempt to distract from his governance failures and shift responsibility onto the Federal Government.
The ZGGF urged the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, the Department of State Services, and the Office of the National Security Adviser to launch a joint probe.
It also demanded a National Assembly inquiry into the governor’s handling of security intelligence and public funds.
Mafara warned that if investigations establish complicity, the Federal Government must act decisively.
“Zamfara has become a killing field under Lawal’s watch. Innocent citizens are dying, villages destroyed, farmlands deserted.
“We cannot continue to suffer while the governor plays politics with people’s lives,” he said.
The Forum concluded by insisting that only emergency rule can restore peace, order, and dignity to the troubled state.
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