National leader of All Progressives Congress,APC,Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu,Thursday, visited Niger state to commiserate with the government over the spate of banditry attacks there.
He also visited former Military President, General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida to receive blessings for his presidential bid,saying there was no way he would visit Niger state and not pay courtesy call and receive prayers.
He said:“If you restrict my visit to this house that is it. Generally, I came to Niger state to commiserate with the Governor and the people of Niger state and so, I can’t stop by without paying a courtesy call to the enigma General Ibrahim Babangida, retired.
“So, he gave me his prayers. You want to know the outcome of the consultations? We are running a democracy, I took my decision voluntarily and I am running for the Presidency of the country, we are running a democracy, thank you very much and God bless you.When I made the declaration, I told you that I am still consulting and I will consult as widely as possible”.
Meanwhile,Governor Abubakar Sani Bello of Niger state, has endorsed the candidature of former Lagos state Governor and National leader of the, All Progressive Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, assuring him that Nigerians await his victory to replicate Lagos transformation in the country.
He described Tinubu as the only candidate that fits the needs and aspirations of the country
“Lagos is a country within a country, we saw the foundation you laid there, we are looking forward to seeing you replicate it for Nigeria”, Governor Bello said as he appreciates the former Lagos state Governor for empathising with the government and people of Niger state.
Bello lamented security situation in the country generally, adding that no where is safe and recounted how some villagers in Mashegu Local Government Area were murdered in cold blood by the armed bandits inside the mosque while observing their early morning prayers.
He said:”Where are we safe in this country? In a place of worship, people have been killed. We are not dealing with normal human beings, but people whose heart has been cemented for evil and no amount of talking or dialogue can change them”.Only recently, they went to a village while they were observing their early morning prayers, locked the door and started shooting indiscriminately, killing 18 people and only those that forced the door open survived and few days later they did same in another village”.
He said the time has come for Nigeria to change its approach to the ongoing was against armed banditry, terrorism and other forms of criminality from the conventional warfare to a technological driven for expected results.
He added:“Since we are not fighting conventional warfare, let’s use technology even though it is expensive, the trend can be checked. The era of sending soldiers into forests when we can deploy drones to monitor movements of bandits and hit targets effortlessly should have been over”.
Tinubu, had earlier enjoined Nigerians not to see the ongoing security breaches as a hopeless situation noting that, with self belief, prayers and determination the situation can be resolved.
“We share in your grief as a people and government. I am here for the people of Niger state, hearing and reading of disasters, banditry attacks and cattle rustling every day, just like what happened on Wednesday again”, Tinubu said.
He donated a N50 million to the victims of banditry attacks in the state.
