A member of Katsina State House of Assembly on Tuesday broke down in tears while addressing colleagues in parliament, warning that bandits had overrun eight of the 10 wards in Matazu Local Government Area.
The attack has reportedly continued with little sign of relief.
Ibrahim Umar Dikko, the Chief Whip of the Katsina House of Assembly, stunned colleagues during plenary when he alleged that farmers could no longer access their farmlands and that 12 people had been killed in just two days.
“Out of the 10 wards, eight are under siege. Farmers cannot go to farms.
“Just yesterday(Monday), by the entrance of the town near the secondary school, they killed a young man and rustled four oxen,” he said at the time, breaking down in tears.
Lawmakers swiftly passed motions urging both state and federal governments to send reinforcements to Matazu and neighbouring Sabuwa, and to investigate the sudden withdrawal of security personnel from several communities.
Residents say the situation remains dire.
Villages in Matazu and Sabuwa report that farmlands are still inaccessible, families remain displaced, and bandits continue to launch raids with impunity.
“We have not seen any fresh deployment.
“People are too scared to return to their farms,” said Aminu Murtala, a resident of Rinjin Idi village.
The village is one of six communities that wrote a petition to the state governor this month over worsening insecurity.
Matazu Local Government chairman, Shamsuddeen Muhammad Sayaya, has appealed for calm, assuring people that authorities are working “tirelessly” with security agencies to restore peace.
