The Parish Priest of St. Joseph’s Parish, Layin Minista, Malumfashi LGA, Katsina State, Rev Fr Stephen Solomon Shidi, has lamented the high level of insecurity in the community lamenting that his Parish at Gidan Namune has been plagued by bandits attacks since 2020.

He also wonders where the bandits were coming from, given the fact that many people had been displaced in most of the villages in the area for almost three years now.

“We used to stay peacefully with one another before the current outbreak of insecurity in the community,” he said, lamenting that people no longer feel safe to go to their respective farms.

The Priest stressed that despite the activities of bandits, the people of area are determined to sustain their families, as many of them risked their. lives and returned to the. farms. This, he said angered the leader of the bandits, who on noticing the development, became angry and declared that, no one was going to be allowed to farm, since they (the bandits) cannot be allowed to farm in the areas.

To achieve their mission, the bandits recently attacked the indigenous people in their farms, shooting, wounding and sacking many out of their farms, as well as taking some of the victims away.

“After taking some of the people in the farms the bandits thereon took some of the people to their den.

“On their way to the bandits’s den with the selected captives, the leader of the bandits asked one of the victims, (name withheld) he knows; to choose between himself and his daughters. But after some moments, the leader of the bandits changed his mind, saying that if he leaves the man with his daughters, he will be killed.”

Fr Shidi called on security operatives to do their best to rescue the kidnapped people of the community; and appealed to the relevant authorities and people of goodwill to come to the aids of the community, by providing food items, medications for the injured and the payments of hospital bills, as well as ensure security presence around the community and their farms.

count | 8

Katsina Parish Endures Years of Bandit Attacks, Says Local Priest