There Is Banditry In The North Because The Poor Are Rebelling Against Neglect – Buhari’s Ex-Minister, Shittu

A former Minister of Communications in the Muhammadu Buhari administration, Adebayo Shittu, has said that banditry in the North is a rebellion against the neglect of the poor.

He stated this during an interview on Arise Television on Thursday.

The former minister argued that bandits are people rebelling due to a lack of education.

He asserted that the level of education in the Southwest is the reason there are few or no records of banditry in the region.

According to him, “What is happening in the Northwest and Northeast in particular is a rebellion against the neglect of the poor.

“Now that we have the issue of banditry on our hands, we have over the years been spending billions of naira in kinetic approach and it’s because people left out of education and civilization that Westernization brings about are rebelling.

“Why there is no banditry in the southwest is because we chose to educate the children.

“When you fail to educate people, over the years they will grow up to find out that the social inequality like some people enjoying light, some driving cars, and they are left out. This makes them start rebellion against the society.”

Shittu’s comment comes after his earlier advice to President Bola Tinubu-led Federal Government to give bandits a promising future through negotiation.