Plateau village heads flee as bandits approach

Village heads in Bashar District in Wase Local Government Area of Plateau State have reportedly fled their communities as bandits are closing in on their abodes.

Bashar is the hometown of the deputy speaker of the House of Representatives, Idris Ahmed Wase.

Daily Trust quoted a resident of Sabon Gari village, Abdullah Usman, that village heads and other residents had taken off.

He said, “The kidnappers attack and kidnap villagers and ask for ransom. If you don’t have money, they kill you. In some cases, they tie you up with ropes.

“On Sunday, they attacked Sabon Gari village and killed three persons. Yesterday (Tuesday), they kidnapped two persons in Yalun village. We are in serious trouble. We are now at the mercy of kidnappers. Village heads of Bangalala, Kinashe, Aduwa and Achale have already fled their areas. The villages are under the total control of kidnappers.”

Abdulhamid Cikaaiki, a resident of Bunyum village, also told Daily Trust that they were planning to flee the village as kidnappers had dominated villages surrounding Bunyum and had been attacking them on daily basis.

Spokesman for Operation Safe Haven, Major Ishaku Takwa, when contacted on the development, said the troops responded to a distress call in the early hours of Tuesday about the bandit attacks and kidnapping in Wase.

He said, “The troops responded swiftly and rescued the victim. The troops also neutralised two of the bandits and recovered an AK-47 rifle belonging to the kidnappers with 17 rounds of ammunition.”