Niger governor labels attack site ‘market of thieves’ after terrorists massacred locals in Borgu

Niger State Governor, Mohammed Bago, has described Kasuwan Daji, the village where more than 40 locals were recently killed by Boko Haram fighters in Borgu Local Government Area, as a “market of thieves.”

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“It was an attack by a bandit group hitting a market where rustled cattle are sold,” he told journalists during his condolence visit to the Emir of Borgu, Muhammad Haliru, at his palace in New Bussa.

The governor also ordered the evacuation of communities in the fringes of now-terrorised Kainji Lake National Park to prevent what he described as “collateral damage.”

PREMIUM TIMES reported that Boko Haram terrorists under the command of Mallam Sadiku launched a Rocket Propelled Grenade (RPG) into Kasuwan Daji, before killing at least 50 locals, mostly men, and abducting women and children.

President Bola Tinubu condemned the attack, ordering the deployment of security forces to track down the perpetrators.

The former governor of the state, Sani Bello, who is now the senator representing the Niger North senatorial district, also donated N10 million to the victims of the incident.

Since the Kasuwan Daji attack, the terrorists have attacked nearby villages—Damala, New Kabe and Kabe—killing and destroying homes and farm produce.

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‘Market of thieves’

In his first visit since the gruesome murder of the locals in Kasuwan Daji, Mr Bago claimed that the village had become notorious for the sale of rustled cattle before the 3 January deadly attack.

“People were slaughtered and murdered in a market square called Kasuwan Daji,” the governor said. “By definition, it is a market where stolen cattle are sold inside the forest. But the most important issue here is that people were killed.”

The governor accused some traditional authorities and community leaders of allowing strangers to settle without proper scrutiny, a lapse he said had enabled criminals and extremist ideologues to gain footholds in the area.

He said the traditional rulers in the area accommodated strangers without knowing where they came from or why they had left their previous locations.

The strangers, he lamented, later arrive with dangerous weapons and extremist ideologies and eventually overpower the host communities.

He warned the Borgu Emirate Council and other traditional institutions to stop accommodating unknown settlers without thorough background checks and coordination with security agencies.

“They must know where these people are coming from, why they left, and why they are here,” the governor said, adding that the traditional institutions must work hand in hand with security agencies to verify identities before allowing anyone to settle.

The governor also raised alarm over alleged open preaching of extremist ideology in parts of the emirate, claiming some individuals had been promoting Boko Haram beliefs, opposing Western education and recruiting locals into their ranks.

He said the emirate council had assured the state government of its readiness to cooperate fully with security agencies to identify and dismantle such networks.

Residents react

However, locals in the area disagreed with the governor, rejecting his “market of thrives” labelling.

A displaced farmer from the village, who asked not to be named, said, “Kasuwan Daji is a village with a market where grains and small livestock were sold.”

READ ALSO: Bago presents ₦1.3 trillion “Budget of Consolidation” to Niger State Assembly

He added that the market was created out of conflict between “Borgu natives in Sukumba and the Kambari people in Kasuwan Daji.”

“So they don’t sell (stolen) cattle in the market as the governor claimed,” he said.

Kasuwan Daji has been in existence for a long time, a resident of New Bussa, Bá Sabouke, noted.

“It is a grains and livestock market,” he said. “People from all parts of Borgu go to the market.”

“Why did the governor decide to name it ‘market of thieves’ when he could go there and find out the truth?” he asked.

A Borgu native and also a traditional title holder in the emirate corroborated this.

“The governor could instead of his claim say the market is illegal because it is not being taxed and that the Kambaris defied the order by Borgu Emirate council that the market be moved to Sukumba,” the local chief who pleaded anonymity because he was not authorised to speak, said.

He explained that Kasuwan Daji is known for the sales of grains like maize, millet and groundnut, among others, including livestock like goats and sheep.