El-Zakzaky questions source of bandits’ weapons, accuses govt of complicity

File copy: IMN leader, El-Zakzaky

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Leader of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria, Sheikh Ibraheem El-Zakzaky, has accused authorities of being complicit in Nigeria’s worsening insecurity, claiming that the crisis is being deliberately engineered.

He questioned how heavily armed bandits and cattle raiders continue to operate with sophisticated weapons and vehicles, including armoured tankers, in rural areas.

Speaking ahead of activities marking the anniversary of the 2015 Zaria massacre in a press conference on Wednesday, El-Zakzaky, asked, “Bush people who have been known to be cattle raiders—how come they have guns? Why do they have these guns? How come those people they call bandits, they have armoured vehicles, including tankers in the bush, and they call them terrorists? Where did they get the tankers?”

In a video clip of the press conference posted by TV Platinum on X, the IMN leader suggested that security agencies are aware of the source of these weapons but have failed to act.

“You have to know that the authorities are behind this insecurity. If they want to stop it today, they can stop it,” he said.

El-Zakzaky accused the government of allowing the violence to escalate, saying, “If they want to stop it today, they will stop it because they are the ones engineering it. All right now, by inviting those who are perpetrators… they will make it more aggressive.”

His remarks come amid growing national concern over attacks by bandits, kidnappers, and other criminal groups, particularly in the North-West and North-Central regions, where such incidents have displaced thousands and caused widespread fear.

Reflecting on the Zaria massacre, he accused the administration of former President Buhari of failing to act on the findings of the judicial commission of inquiry, submitted in September 2016.

The 2015 clash occurred during a Maulud procession in Zaria, Kaduna State, when IMN members blocked the convoy of the then Chief of Army Staff, Lt-Gen. Tukur Buratai, en route to a passing-out parade. The military described it as an assassination attempt on Buratai, a claim the IMN rejected.

What began as a standoff quickly escalated into a violent confrontation. Soldiers carried out coordinated operations at multiple IMN locations, including El-Zakzaky’s residence. Human Rights Watch reported that approximately 300 members were killed and secretly buried, while a state-backed judicial commission put the civilian death toll at over 1,000. The military contested these figures.

El-Zakzaky and his wife, Zeenat, were arrested following the incident and remained in detention until July 2021, when a Kaduna State High Court discharged and acquitted them of all charges.

During the press conference, El-Zakzaky said, “Nothing has been done. They do not even acknowledge that anything happened. The president at the time said he was following the matter with rapt attention. But he finished his first and second terms, and they said nothing.”

El-Zakzaky directly addressed Buhari, recalling the day he was shot: “I could remember when I was shot, one of his ministers phoned me, and I said this, when I was shot, I was in blood. One of his ministers phoned me, and I spoke to him I said, I am waiting for my blood to drain so that I will pass. So, my greetings to General Buhari. Tell him I am greeting. We will meet on the Day of Judgement.”

He contrasted Buhari’s inaction with the current government, which he said had privately promised to address the massacre but remained silent. “They ought to address it. We don’t have to demand. They ought to address it,” he said.

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