‘
Nigeria’s long, troubled search for peace in the Northwest took an unsettling turn this month after a group of armed bandits in Katsina openly accused government authorities of enabling the very insecurity they claim to be fighting. The allegation, made during a new round of community-brokered peace talks in Charanchi and Batagarawa council areas, has triggered fresh debates about state responsibility, political complicity and the limits of negotiation in a region that has endured over a decade of killings, kidnappings and mass displacement.
The peace meeting, held against the backdrop of multiple previous truces that collapsed across Katsina between 2017 and 2024, saw one of the bandits address residents directly with a startling declaration. “It was the government that wanted us to engage in banditry, but now it has called us and told us to stop,” he said at the gathering, insisting that the power to end the violence “lies with Nigerian leaders.” He added, “Peaceful coexistence and the end of insecurity depend on the Nigerian government. If they want us to keep striking, we will. But if they want peace, we will also make it happen.”
The remarks have revived lingering questions about political influence and the deeper drivers of a crisis that has devastated at least 18 of Katsina’s 34 local government areas. According to records compiled by Daily Trust and independent security trackers, over half of Katsina’s LGAs have now signed some form of peace pact with bandits in the last six months, allowing them freedom of movement in exchange for halting attacks and releasing captives. Communities like Jibia, Batsari, Safana, Funtua and Malumfashi report a marked reduction in attacks since the agreements took effect, enabling farmers to return to their fields and schools to reopen. But the respite has been uneven. Between October and November 2025 alone, villages in Musawa, Malumfashi and Bakori recorded fresh raids, while neighbouring areas that refused to sign deals such as Kusada and Kankia — suffered four major attacks in the same period.
Across the Northwest, an estimated 1,000 lives were lost after failed peace deals between 2020 and 2024, according to the Nigeria Risk Index’s 2024 security overview. Those collapses were often traced to unmet government promises, internal bandit rivalries and the absence of long-term economic reforms. Katsina’s earlier agreements in 2017 and 2019 followed a similar pattern: an initial lull, followed by renewed abductions, including the high-profile 2020 kidnapping of over 300 schoolboys in Kankara.
Local leaders acknowledge the complexity. While the recent Charanchi pact was signed by council chairmen, Governor Umar Dikko Radda has distanced his administration from direct involvement. “My stance as a governor is that I won’t negotiate with bandits at the point of weakness,” he said, insisting he would not beg armed groups for peace. Yet his own LGA is participating, a contradiction that critics say underscores political fluidity rather than principle.
Security analysts are divided on the best path forward. Some, like Abubakar Ibrahim, warn that the ongoing negotiations are “temporary victories” that could collapse abruptly. “The current peace deal, no matter how long it takes, will fail,” he cautioned. Others, including Abdulrahman Abdullahi of the Coalition of Civil Society Organisations, say communities were left with little choice after years of unmet security commitments. “What was left was for the federal security agencies to declare war, and that was not forthcoming,” he argued. “Negotiations must be allowed to hold no matter how fragile.”
But the fragility is evident. In Kebbi, a customs officer was killed last week when suspected Lakurawa terrorists attacked a border checkpoint at Kaoje, torching the camp before escaping on motorcycles. Nasarawa witnessed a midnight raid in Keana LGA, prompting Governor Abdullahi Sule to warn perpetrators of imminent arrest: “The state government will not watch enemies of peace succeed in their evil acts,” he said through his adviser, Peter Ahemba.
At the same time, community anger continues to brew. Residents interviewed by Fairview Africa expressed frustration, not just at the bandits, but at what they believe is elite negligence. Michael, a trader in Kaduna, referenced the late General Sani Abacha’s infamous remark. “I think if the government want to end the bandit, they can easily do that within 24 hours,” he said. “Abacha said any banditry that lasted more than 24 hours, government hand is in it. If they want to end it, they can.” Okechukwu, a mechanic, described the insecurity as “not only a Katsina issue,” insisting that government has “every right to stop it instantly.” Another resident, James, called the crisis “political,” adding, “I believe if the government want to end bandit in Nigeria, they can do it because their hand is involved.”
These perceptions reflect a deeper trust deficit that has widened over years of uneven security policy, failed negotiations, and limited federal presence in remote communities. Research by multiple conflict-monitoring groups shows that many rural residents no longer see peace agreements as frameworks for reconciliation, but as survival bargains necessitated by government absence. In the absence of nationwide reforms targeting youth unemployment, shrinking grazing land and rising rural poverty — factors repeatedly cited in security analyses experts warn that both banditry and negotiations risk becoming entrenched.
Yet there are also voices urging balance. Major Ibrahim Yahaya Shinkon (rtd) argues that victims must remain central to any new approach. “One thing has to be done first, and that is for the government to take care of the victims,” he said. Air Marshal Sunday Aneke, the Chief of Air Staff, maintains that armed groups will not be allowed to dictate the country’s security direction, declaring: “Wherever they hide, whether in forests, valleys or remote villages, our forces will find them.”
.
