Sokoto Community Pays Hefty ₦160bn to Bandits in Ransoms, Levies, Group Claims

The ongoing security crisis in Sokoto State, particularly in Sabon Birni Local Government Area, has forced the local community to pay over ₦160 billion in ransoms and levies to bandits, according to the Gobir Development Association, a group of professionals from the area.

In a press statement released on Saturday and signed by the association’s chairman, Idris Alhassan Gatawa, and secretary, Professor Aliyu Gobir, the group disclosed that in addition to the enormous sums paid, the community has suffered losses exceeding ₦2 billion due to the activities of armed bandits.

The group condemned the escalating violence in the region, citing the recent killing of their District Head, Muhammad Bawa. Bawa was abducted and killed by bandits while returning from an official engagement along the Sabon Birni-Sokoto Road.

The statement detailed the financial and social toll of banditry on the community, noting that over ₦60 billion has been paid as ransom, with an additional ₦100 billion extorted through imposed levies by the bandits. The community also lost more than 600,000 heads of cattle and 5 million sheep and goats to rustling over the past five years.

Moreover, the group highlighted that about two-thirds of the arable farmland in the area is now inaccessible due to the fear of attacks, leading to significant economic losses and a severe impact on food and nutrition security. The psychological and social effects on the population have also been profound.

The Gobir Development Association urged the government at all levels to take immediate and decisive action to halt the killings, kidnappings, and displacement of people, as well as to curb livestock rustling, in order to restore peace and stability to the affected areas.