Arewa Youth Leader Calls for Dialogue With Bandits

Danbature Abdul has urged the Federal Government to make dialogue with bandits a key part of efforts to improve security across Nigeria.

The President of the Arewa Youths, Danbature Abdul, said the government should give greater attention to dialogue with bandits alongside security operations. He argued that talks could play a major role in reducing banditry, kidnapping, and other forms of insecurity across the country.

“I will always call on government to always consider dialogue. They should consider dialogue 100% with the b@ndits because it will go a long way,” Abdul said.

He stressed that the authorities should also focus on the root causes of the security crisis instead of relying only on military action. According to him, lasting solutions will come from understanding the problems behind the violence and addressing them directly.

“They need to look at the root. They should know and try to check what are the solutions and what are the problems,” he added.

Abdul also referred to an incident in Benue State, where he claimed a group leader was allegedly k+lled after taking part in a peace dialogue. He warned that such incidents could weaken trust in future peace efforts and discourage others from participating.

He also urged Nigerians to avoid branding an entire ethnic group as terr%rists because of the actions of a few individuals.

“Do you know that it’s not every Fulani that are terr%rists? It’s not proper whenever there is a conflict or any illegal activity for someone to tag an entire tribe or ethnic group as terrorists. We still have good Fulanis that are ready to work with the government and help the military with tangible information,” he said.

Abdul encouraged the military to work closely with those willing to provide credible intelligence, saying stronger cooperation could help reduce terrorism, banditry, kidnappings, and other vi%lent attacks nationwide.

Do you think dialogue with bandits should play a bigger role in tackling insecurity?