A civil society group, the Citizens for Equity and Justice Initiative (CEJI), has condemned Zamfara and Katsina state governments over a recent ‘peace meeting’ held with a bandit leader, Ado Aleru, who has been declared wanted by security forces.

The meeting, which held in Bichi community, Danmusa LGA of Katsina, was attended by traditional rulers, local government officials, representatives of the Nigerian Army, and top officials from both states. 

In widely circulated video footage, Aleru was seen addressing the gathering, calling for peaceful coexistence between Fulani herders and farming communities.

In a statement on Friday, CEJI President Dr. Abdulmumin Sarki questioned the circumstances that allowed a wanted individual to appear publicly and participate in an official gathering without being apprehended.

Aleru has been linked to countless acts of terror and bloodshed in the north-west, with human rights organisations accusing him of orchestrating mass killings, mass kidnappings, and the displacement of thousands. His reemergence, not in handcuffs but at the centre of state-sanctioned negotiations, has sparked outrage across the country.

CEJI, a non-partisan watchdog focused on justice and rule of law, said the presence of state officials and security personnel at a meeting where Aleru was not only welcomed but offered a platform to speak, was a complete betrayal of the Nigerian people and an affront to every citizen who has lost a loved one to bandit violence.

In a statement issued signed by its president, Dr Abdulmumin Sarki, the group accused governors Dikko Radda of Katsina and Dauda Lawal of Zamfara of hypocrisy and political cowardice.

“These are the same governors who, while campaigning, condemned so-called peace deals with blood-stained warlords,” Sarki said.

“Now in power, they are doing precisely what they once derided — normalising criminals as stakeholders in the governance process, even as tens of thousands of citizens remain unaccounted for due to the very violence these men unleashed.”

Describing the peace meeting as a “moral collapse of governance”, CEJI urged the National Human Rights Commission and international partners to investigate the meeting as a possible violation of Nigeria’s obligations under international law.

“You do not negotiate with terrorists in the open, not when the blood of their victims is still drying, not when they remain armed, wanted, and unrepentant. It is a dangerous precedent that delegitimises state authority and emboldens violent actors,” Sarki added.

The group also called on the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, and the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, to immediately investigate the circumstances under which Ado Aleru was allowed to surface freely and publicly despite his wanted status.

Vanguard News