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The Zamfara Conflict Resolution Concern Forum (ZCRC), has decried what it described as the “persistent absence of our Governor, Dauda Lawal in the face of mounting security challenges that our state is currently experiencing.”

The group demanded that the President Bola Tinubu-Led Federal Government should immediately set the stage for the declaration of an indefinite state of emergency on the state over the Governor’s continued absence from the state.

In a statement issued on Monday and personally signed by its Convener, Tukur Sabi Gusau, the group said that it was “with great concern that we observe the void left by the absence of the Governor who should be around working to address the security challenges plaguing our State which represent a serious threat to the peace and stability we all seek.”

He explained that “This press statement is therefore necessary to warn Governor Lawal to note that indiscriminate acts of violence, crime, and acts of terror have not only caused immense harm to innocent lives but have also instilled fear and anxiety into the hearts of our fellow citizens.

“It is regrettable that the lack of the Governor’s active involvement in addressing these challenges intensifies the despair felt by all of us, further eroding our trust in the preparedness, sincerity and political resolve to protect our lives and properties.

“In times of crisis such as this one, a responsible, sensitive and decent leader is expected by his people to step up, guide, and provide reassurance to the state.

“But without strong leadership from Governor Lawal, the confidence and trust necessary to strengthen the security apparatus and combat the prevailing challenges in Zamfara State are profoundly compromised.

“It is regrettable that Governor Lawal who should always be available to work collaboratively, across all sectors, and develop comprehensive strategies to safeguard the well-being and security of the people who voted him to power, he happens to almost all the time in Abuja or outside the country.

“At the risk of overstating the continued absence of Governor Lawal from the state and abandoning the people to the mercy of dangerous bandits, kidnappers and rapists, one can unhesitatingly assert that Governor Lawal’s audacity for flying out of the state on the day unspecified number of female students were forcefully abducted from their campus, presumably to attend the ongoing UNGA in faraway New York, are testements to his lack of integrity, decisiveness, and a firm commitment to the welfare of our people.

“The situation becomes even more worrying considering that the Governor is not even among the official delegation of Mr President to UNGA.
Leadership should not be a mere title, but a role that demands responsibility, accountability, and the ability to galvanize the collective efforts needed to address these pressing security challenges.

“Based on the inevitable observations drawn above, the ZCRC arising from an emergency meeting in Gusau, has resolved to:

“Demand the Federal Government under President Bola Tinubu to immediately set the stage for the declaration of and indefinite state of emergency on the state in view of Governor Lawal’s abandoning the state in the face of daunting security challenges and proving the widespread concern that he is patriotically ill-prepared, morally ill-equipped and apparently lacking in the resolve required to protect a people in distress.

“By perpetually abandoning the people that voted him to power at the mercy of a rampaging criminal onslaught, Governor Lawal has lost every moral claim to remaining in office beyond now.

“The only available option for the rescue of the people of Zamfara from Governor Lawal’s administration that had within such a short time acquired the reputation of being the worst in the history of our state in terms of any capacity to generate confidence in achieving credible national goals, is the declaration of a state of emergency by the Federal Government.

“With such level of lack of strong leadership at the state, it is understandable that criminals and killers feel emboldened and see an opportunity to exploit the system leading to an increase in their confidence and competence in subverting the state and compromising our security.

“Finally we categorically state that the people of Zamfara cannot continue to live and die under the dictates of killers, kidnappers, rapists and sundry criminal groups that have deprived us of our rights to live in peace and security”, the group stated.