Banditry: Informants Biggest Challenge to Military Operations, GOC Says

The General Officer Commanding (GOC), 8 Division of the Nigerian Army, Sokoto, Major-General Paul Koughna, has identified the activities of informants as a major obstacle to military operations against banditry and terrorism in Sokoto State and other parts of the North-West.

Koughna said the informants provide bandits and terrorists with intelligence on troop movements and military operations, thereby undermining efforts to combat insecurity.

He spoke on Saturday in Sokoto at a one-day brainstorming session on coping with banditry in the state, organised by the Sokoto Advancement Forum (SAF) in collaboration with the Centre for Peace Studies, Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto.

The GOC, who was represented by the Garrison Commander, 8 Division Garrison, Brigadier-General I. O. Amah, also emphasised the importance of air power, operational mobility and improved military equipment in the fight against criminal groups.

He described sustained aerial surveillance and air interdiction as critical to weakening bandits and terrorists, noting that the prompt deployment of air assets had previously helped to improve security in Sokoto State.

According to him, the presence of aircraft responding swiftly to distress calls contributed to a period of relative stability in the state.

“If we continue to deploy air assets in this manner, I am sure we will achieve maximum results,” he said.

Koughna also commended the Sokoto State Government for providing 63 Buffalo armoured vehicles to security agencies, saying the vehicles had improved the military’s ability to access difficult terrain and confront armed groups.

He explained that the armoured vehicles offered troops better protection against enemy fire and enabled them to advance towards bandits’ camps that were previously difficult to reach.

“Imagine if you are in soft-skin vehicles, you can’t go and attack them because they will pierce the vehicles and kill our soldiers.

“But these armoured vehicles are plated. With such vehicles, we can go to their camps, keep firing and protect our soldiers,” he said.

The Army commander appealed to the Federal Government and other stakeholders to provide more armoured vehicles to strengthen ongoing operations, adding that improved mobility would enable troops to close in on criminal hideouts and force the occupants to retreat.

He further disclosed that Operation Fasan Yamma, under the leadership of the Sector 2 Commander and the GOC of 8 Division, had recorded significant operational achievements in the preceding 19 months.

Sultan seeks stronger traditional institutions

Meanwhile, the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar, has called for improved training and capacity-building for traditional rulers to enable them to contribute more effectively to conflict prevention and resolution.

The Sultan, represented at the event by the District Head of Gagi, Sarkin Yakin Gagi, Alhaji Sani Umar Jabbi, described traditional institutions as custodians of grassroots communities whose involvement was essential to the success of interventions aimed at restoring peace.

He said traditional rulers needed greater technical knowledge of contemporary conflict mitigation and resolution strategies to respond effectively to the growing security challenges confronting their communities.

The Sultan urged the Sokoto State Government and the organisers of the forum to establish more training programmes for traditional rulers, stressing that better-informed traditional institutions would be better positioned to guide their subjects and support government interventions.

“We need more joint efforts with the Centre. We are appealing to the Sokoto State Government and organisers to brainstorm and establish more technical training for our traditional institution.

“The more we are enlightened, the more we are respected. We share with the people, we guide them on decision making. Provided we are sufficiently informed and effectively mobilised, we can make a lot of contributions at the community level,” he said.

Abubakar also expressed concern over the impact of insecurity on communities and called for a sustainable approach to managing internally displaced persons (IDPs).

He cautioned against relying solely on the relocation of displaced persons to urban centres, warning that prolonged concentration in cities could create additional social challenges.

Instead, he advocated the establishment of larger, well-organised communities where residents of smaller settlements destroyed or abandoned because of banditry could be resettled.

According to him, such communities would make it easier to mobilise young people and other residents to protect themselves against attacks while improving access to essential services.

The Sultan also proposed the establishment of mega schools and health facilities to provide education and healthcare for residents of the proposed settlements.

He stressed that addressing banditry required a combination of military action and non-kinetic measures, including dialogue, community engagement and collaboration with religious leaders and other influential stakeholders.

The Sultanate Council, he assured, would continue to serve as a bridge between the government and local communities in the pursuit of lasting peace.

He also commended the Centre for the Advancement of Sokoto, under the leadership of Professor Isko, and other stakeholders for bringing together experts and indigenes to deliberate on solutions to the state’s security challenges.

“Sokoto is our state. We have no other state than Sokoto. So coming together with different technocrats and Sokoto indigenes to look at the future of Sokoto, I believe it is timely,” he said.