ADC to Tinubu: Declare State of Emergency in Katsina, Zamfara

ADC to Tinubu: Declare State of Emergency in Katsina, Zamfara

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has urged President Bola Tinubu to immediately declare a state of emergency in Katsina and Zamfara States following renewed bandit attacks that claimed over 140 lives in two months.

The party, in a strongly worded statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, on Sunday, described the massacre of worshippers and villagers in Malumfashi, Katsina State, as “damning proof of Nigeria’s collapsed security architecture.”

According to Abdullahi, “This evil act epitomizes the horrors Nigerians have been forced to endure under this administration. It is also a damning proof of the total collapse of our national security architecture, which has prompted even the nation’s Chief of Defence Staff to ask citizens to learn how to defend themselves.”

He said the killings in Katsina and Zamfara, where dozens of hostages were executed despite ransom payment, highlighted government failure to protect lives and property.

“It is disheartening to note that instead of confronting these urgent national tragedies with the seriousness that they demand, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu continues to jet-set across the world, chasing photo-ops, while his people are dying in dozens at home,” Abdullahi added.

The ADC spokesperson also accused the President of failing to directly commiserate with bereaved families. “It is equally appalling to note that President Tinubu has not made a direct statement of condolence to families of victims or given the assurance of safety to those still alive. This negligence would have been unthinkable in those countries that the President loves to visit,” he said.

While calling for a total overhaul of the country’s security system, the ADC also berated the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Governors for holding their forum meeting in Zamfara a few days after the bloodbath.

“Instead of the governors to rally around their beleaguered colleague to help stop the orgy of killings, they chose to stage a political rally at the scene of mass murder, even if it meant trampling on the memory of the victims,” Abdullahi said.

He described the act as “insensitive and totally out of place in an environment that still reeks of blood and sorrow,” adding that both the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the opposition PDP had shown that they cared more about power than the people.