I Will Never Negotiate With Bandits — Zamfara Gov Lawal

Zamfara State Governor, Dauda Lawal, has declared that he will never negotiate with bandits or pay ransom for the release of abducted persons, insisting that such payments only strengthen criminal groups.

Lawal stated this during an appearance on Channels Television, where he explained his position on negotiations with bandits and the government’s response to insecurity in Zamfara State.

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The governor said he maintained the same position when his brothers were abducted, revealing that he refused to pay the ransom demanded by their captors.

According to Lawal, paying ransom would amount to providing criminals with funds to acquire more sophisticated weapons and expand their operations.

“You are empowering the bandits. Because for every dime that you pay, that is what they use to get all these sophisticated weapons they use. If they don’t get the money, how do you think they’ll get the weapons?” he said.

Lawal said he had consistently opposed ransom payments because kidnapping had increasingly become a business for criminal groups.

He also criticised negotiations conducted with bandits under previous administrations, arguing that such efforts failed partly because the groups were not organised under a single leadership structure.

According to him, negotiating with one group could provoke another group to intensify attacks in an attempt to gain government attention or recognition.

“It happens severally, and I’ve seen it. Where when you negotiate with A, B would think that you’re underrating him. And therefore, that is when he would show that he’s also somebody to recognise,” Lawal said.

He added that the lack of identifiable leadership among the bandit groups made negotiations difficult and ineffective.

“So how do you go into negotiations with this kind of people? Nobody takes responsibility. Nobody takes leadership,” the governor said.

Lawal’s position comes amid continued debate over the effectiveness of ransom payments and negotiations as a response to kidnapping and banditry in parts of northern Nigeria.