Kaduna State Governor Uba Sani has made it clear that his administration will never pay or negotiate with bandits, stating that doing so contradicts the principles of justice and protection for the poor.
Speaking on Arise Television’s Prime Time programme on Thursday, Governor Sani addressed earlier criticisms suggesting he might be considering negotiations or payments to bandits. He dismissed those claims as baseless and inconsistent with his decades-long track record of fighting for justice and the downtrodden.
“A man who fought for justice and for the downtrodden can’t sit down with the bandit and pay him,” he said.
According to Sani, insecurity in the North-West is primarily driven by economic factors, unlike the ideologically motivated Boko Haram insurgency in the North-East. While acknowledging that a kinetic approach alone cannot solve the crisis, he emphasized that any sustainable solution must focus on supporting victims, not perpetrators.
“When I started, a lot of people were criticising me, saying, ‘you are trying to pay bandits’. But… I haven’t given one naira to the bandits,” the governor stated.
Instead, Governor Sani revealed that his government has chosen to empower and rehabilitate victims of violence. As a part of this initiative, houses were built for those affected by bandit attacks in Kaduna State.
“Only two weeks ago… I gave houses to the victims of insurgency instead of compensating or giving anything to the bandits.”
Governor Sani’s firm stance underscores a growing demand among citizens for accountable governance and victim-centered justice, especially in regions plagued by criminal violence and insecurity.
