Banditry: Zamfara restores telecoms services in capital Gusau

Bello Matawalle

After about a month, Zamfara State Governor Bello Matatwalle has ordered the restoration of telecoms services in Gusau the state capital.

The state government had facilitated the shutdown of telecoms networks in the state since early September to check banditry.

However, the governor’s spokesperson Zailani Baffa in a statement on Friday said Mr Matawalle had given the nod for telecoms services to be restored in the capital, adding that the measure had made life more difficult for the people. He was, however, silent on the impact in other parts of the state.

“The restoration of the service at the state capital becomes imperative following the tremendous success recorded in the fight against banditry in the state and to ease the hardship faced by both the private and public sectors of the state,” Mr Baffa said in the statement.

“Government finds it necessary to ease the tight measure after the recorded success desired of it which has no doubt destabilised the syndicate of criminals terrorising the state, leading to the successes recorded against them by the security operatives.”

“Governor Matawalle promises that his administration will continue to monitor closely the unfolding developments and will announce further decisions of the Government on measures being taken appropriately,” he added.

On Thursday, the state government said over 2,000 suspected informants of bandits had been arrested since it cut telecoms services to support military offensive against bandits in the state.

Zamfara is not the only state to have taken such measure. The governments of three other north-west states have done same.