Zamfara bandit leader Turji Bello yet to surrender – DHQ
The Defence Headquarters has denied reports that bandit leader Bello Turji has surrendered to the military.
During a briefing held in Abuja on Thursday, Maj. Gen. Markus Kangye, the Director of Defence Media Operations, stated, “Simple answer to the question about terrorist leader, Bello Turji; Turji has not surrendered, we are still on the lookout for him.”
Turji, who is a notorious figure operating mainly in Zamfara and Sokoto states, has been implicated in numerous attacks on communities across the North-West.
Recently, there were claims suggesting that he had laid down his arms and released 32 kidnapped victims, facilitated by a peace initiative from Islamic clerics in Zamfara State. However, the military maintains its efforts to apprehend him.
Maj. Gen. Kangye also addressed allegations made by Amnesty International regarding extrajudicial killings by military personnel in the South-East, referring to these claims as unfounded.
He emphasized, “What do you mean by extrajudicial killing? Is it that soldiers carry their weapons, go to the street and start shooting people? You know what Amnesty International are doing. You know what they used to publish.” He added, “But I can tell you that the military is not engaged in any extrajudicial killing in the South East.”
In response to recent protests by some retired military personnel, Kangye explained that the Military Pensions Board had recently met with affected veterans to address their grievances.
He clarified that only a small number of individuals were involved in the protests, and productive discussions with military officials were held to resolve their issues.
“This issue was addressed by the military pensions board last week,” he noted. “You see, one issue to understand is that when two or three jumped up and used the mouths of others to propagate or send out messages, it can be said to be the retired personnel of the armed forces did this.”
Brig. Gen. Tukur Gusau, the Director of Defence Information, echoed Kangye’s remarks and informed the press that the Chief of Defence Staff had recently met with a committee formed by the Ministry of Defence to discuss veterans’ welfare. He confirmed that the committee is currently working on solutions to enhance support for military veterans.
“I want to inform you that just yesterday the CDS had a meeting with a five-man standing committee, which was constituted by the Ministry of Defence to address this issue. It has been headed by a retired Air Commodore,” Gusau stated. “They were here yesterday afternoon. They had a meeting with the CDS, and modalities have been worked out on how to address the welfare needs of our veterans.”
Source: PUNCH
