How Zamfara Govt Attempted To Subvert Buhari’s No-fly-zone Order

Officials of the Presidency have accused Governor Bello Matawalle and some of his aides of trying to undermine the ‘No fly’ restriction placed over the state by President Muhamadu Buhari.

It was gathered that the Zamfara government had openly opposed the no fly order and the ban placed on mining activities.

This is despite the rising insecurity in the state that led to the abduction of nearly 300 schoolgirls a few weeks ago.

Speaking to The Punch, a presidential official expressed surprise that the Zamfara State Assembly could pass a vote of no confidence in the National Security Adviser, Babagana Monguno, even though the NSA was not a state government official.

“They are not stopping at that (vote of no confidence) as findings have revealed that a campaign of calumny against the person of the NSA had been perfected and certain elements from political divides in the country, especially from his Peoples Democratic Party, including a former minister, will be used,” the source said.

Another official disclosed that some of the foreign illegal miners were linked to banditry and the Zamfara State Government ignored the destruction of some villages, where mining takes place.

The source also accused Matawalle of tolerating the use of chopper flights in and out to facilitate illegal mining.

According to the Aso Rock official, security reports had traced some persons to the rising insurgency and banditry in Zamfara State due to the power given to illegal miners, especially the foreigners, most of whom were said to be Chinese nationals.

According to the report, before these illegal miners and their local recruits, who had been cleared by the state government, arrived at the gold mining sites of their choice, the bandits would have stormed the communities, where the operations will take place, to render the areas desolate for the miners to have a field day.

Having secured the sites for them, the Chinese move around the illegal mining sites, flying in with helicopters to bypass immigration checkpoints, and this, it was said, accounted for the persistence of banditry and insurgency, as military activities were being undermined by those who profit from the sector at the expense of vulnerable indigenes and residents.

Also worrying to the President, it was learned, was the fact that the state government had attempted to facilitate the granting of federal licences to some long time illegal miners without questioning their acts of violating the rights of Zamfara villagers, whose land and communities, like in Bagega, witnessed untold suffering because of the activities of the miners.

A Villa official stated, “It is unconscionable that the government will ignore the protection of its people just because some of its top officials have monetary benefits from mining.”

Some representatives of the Zamfara State Government were also accused of offering an inducement to some ministers and close aides to the President if they could help prevent the no fly restriction and the ban on mining.