Governor Umaru Bago has urged Niger residents to defend their communities against bandits, rejecting ransom payments to kidnappers.
He also banned mining in Zone C, linking it to rising insecurity.
Niger State Governor, Umaru Bago, has called on residents to take responsibility for their safety and defend their communities against bandit attacks.
Speaking during a visit to Rijau and Magama local government areas both recently targeted by gunmen operating from the Kontagora axis the governor made it clear that his administration would neither negotiate with criminals nor pay ransom to secure the release of abducted victims.
Bago said the security situation in parts of the state had reached a point that demanded collective action, warning that ransom payments would only encourage further kidnappings by turning crime into a business.
He stressed that the state would not yield to bandit threats, noting that the Nigerian Constitution empowers citizens to defend their lives and property when under attack. The governor urged communities to unite and resist criminal elements determined to destabilize the region.
Describing the continued raids and displacement of residents as unacceptable, Bago announced a plan to recruit and train 10,000 members for a state joint task force aimed at strengthening community protection and restoring peace.
In a statement by his Special Adviser on Print Media, Aisha Wakaso, the governor also declared an immediate ban on all mining operations across Zone C, which covers Magama, Kontagora, Rijau, Wushishi, Mariga, Borgu, Mashegu, and Agwara local government areas.
He said illegal mining had become a major factor fueling insecurity, as it allows access to forest areas often used by bandits as hideouts. According to him, it was suspicious that miners could freely operate in such areas while residents remained unsafe.
Bago ordered the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) to arrest anyone found engaging in mining within the affected zone. He reaffirmed his administration’s resolve to end the cycle of violence and restore lasting peace to all parts of the state.
