How a traditional ruler gave chieftaincy title to a bandit – Babajide Otitoju

Ace investigative journalist, Babajide Kolade-Otitoju, has shared the story of a traditional ruler who got involved with a bandit. In a recent interview on TVC News, Babajide revealed what happened to the traditional ruler in Zamfara state.

Sharing the story, Babajide said, “It is a big problem. A traditional ruler in Zamfara State gave a cheiftancy title to a bandit. The governor became really upset with the incident, and the district head was swiftly removed. How do you bestow a traditional title on a bandit? This means you support the actions of the bandit, and you see the bandit as someone who deserves to be honored. Highly placed people are honored with chieftaincy titles.It says a lot about the district head who bestowed the title on the terrorist. This tells us that the district head liked hanging out with bandits as they were his friends. In his own view, bandits deserve to be honored.

He continued, “Zurmi and Dansadau (whose Emirs were recently deposed over links with bandits) are the worst affected by bandit attacks in Zamfara. Bandits have killed many people in both LGAs, and a Nigerian Air Force alpha jet was shot down in Dansadau forest. Those areas are known for having a huge presence of bandits. Many parts of Zurmi were destroyed by bandits. They even kidnapped twin sisters who were about to get married in the Zurmi area.

Click here to watch the interview. (41:00 minute)