Masari’s war against cattle rustling

It is what people say  has  defied  all solutions. Some  say tackling  it is  as  herculean as  an  attempt to climb  Mount Everest  while  others  mystify it to be  a danger lurking  to hunt whoever  dares  to   take  the   bold   step.    To   Aminu   Bello Masarl the indefatigable Governor of Katsina State  who spearheaded a joint effort to operationally tackle the  menace of cattle  rustling  among  the North-West  states affected, these statements are from pessimists with full description of despondency and  lack of focus.

Before   Masari   assumed  office   as   a governor,   cattle rustling  and  associated vices  were  on a high ebb  as  no day passed without recording  rustling  incidents accompanied by colossal  loss  of lives  and  property.  The  socio-economic lives of the  people  were badly affected   as  their  age-long tradition of farming  became crippled.  

Bearing in mind  that  “Peace  and Security”  is the  only  panacea to sustainable  development of Katsina   State    and    the   promise     he    made   during    the governorship campaign  of  doing  all  he  could  to  bring  back sanity and  peace  to the central and  southern parts of the  state, MASARI has  defied  the odds and  took the bull by the  horn.

He   committed   resources to   the    fight   against cattle rustling    based   on   his   initiative  that    culminated   in   the creation  of  a  joint   operation  involving  states ion the   North-West. This, has   yielded positive results  as   thousands  of rustled animals were recovered  and  given  back  to their  rightful  owners through the  State Standing Committee on  Farmers/ Fulani   Herdsmen  Cooperation. Several arrests were also   made.  All  these  efforts  he   has   been   making without attracting so  much attention as  it is  said  that  “It  is only  empty barrels that  make the  loudest noise”.

The offensive code  named “Operation Sharan Daji” launched  by   the   highly    motivated  Joint   Operation Team overtime, made  some  of  the   criminals  to  have  a  second­ thought of denouncing criminality and  when the  government decided to extend the  olive  branch to them, they willingly accepted and  negotiation began in earnest. In the  wisdom of the governor,   he    knew  that    tackling   a   hydra-headed monster like   this   requires  logical  reasoning  and   sacrifice. Hence, the   carrot   and    stick    approach.  This   is   a   great sacrifice   that   will  go  a  long  way in  giving   room  for  more repentants and  fulfilling  the  onerous obligation of any government by  creating an  enabling environment where the citizens   can    go   about    their    activities  without   fear    or molestation.

Therefore, it can  be  said  without any  iota of doubt  that the   giant   strides  of   the   governor   are   gradually   moving towards achieving   the  much  desired   peace  in  the  frontline Local government areas  of the  state  through the  platform  of negotiation   instead  of   war   which  sometimes  lead   to collateral  damages. The  rhetorics  of political pundits who  see nothing  good in what the government is doing and  are trying to  influence discerning minds  towards  that   direction  has been  defeated as  the  initiative has  taken shape, making  the Masari-led   administration  the   first   to  achieve  this   feat which    is    aimed    at    deradicalizing,   re-forming    and    re­ integrating the repentant rustlers.

A day  was set  aside  for the  formal  declaration of that negotiation and  that  day  will forever  remain  relevant  in the annals of the history  of Katsina State  as the governor ably represented by  the  Secretary to the  Government of the  State (SGS) Mustapha Inuwa (Dr) including   heads of  security agencies   stormed   Flela Village  in  Safana Local Government Area  on  8th  October,  2016   where   the  epoch-making   event took  place   with  all  critical  stakeholders,   including representatives  of  the   cattle   rustlers   present.  This   was borne out of the commitment and sincerity of purpose of the governor  towards achieving  peace.  A leader that cares for the wellbeing of the citizenry.

The exemplary leadership quality inherent in Masari is enviable as he  has  started  thinking  of consolidating on the peace     to    be    achieved.   He   promised     to    roll   out    a developmental framework that  will help his government in harnessing the  full potentials of the  Rugu  Forest  axis  of the state  which is believed to have  mineral  deposits and  other natural  resources that  can  be  used  to turn  the  economy  of the    state     around.   It    will    serve    as    an    avenue   for diversification as  the  governor  has  expressed his  resolve  to utilize  all the  derivables from the  forest  which the  state  has been  deprived  of due  to the criminality  that  thrives within its large expanse.

Against  this  backdrop,  it is  only  fair that  this  singular effort  of the  governor towards developing the state be commended  and   appreciated  by   all  and   sundry  without recourse  to party  affiliation,  religious  or ethnic  leanings. In the  style   Masari  is  adopting   to  achieve   this   momentous feat   lies  a  model  that  should  be  emulated by  other  states facing similar problems.

Bello writes from Katsina State