President Muhammadu Buhari has ordered for an immediate response to rising cases of bandit attacks on communities in Zamfara State, according to a presidency statement on Thursday.

In a directive to the National Security Adviser, Major-General Babagana Monguno (Rtd), the President ordered that there must be a clear pathway to ending the resurgent banditry that has continued to cost lives and the displacement of thousands of families from their towns and villages.

This development follows the recent letter of the Speaker of the Zamfara State House of Assembly, Hon. Nasir Magarya, to President Buhari appealing for an intervention to stop the incessant killings by bandits in the State.

“In this respect, a meeting is soon to take place that will deliberate on security and the issue of illegal mining which is fueling the crisis in Zamfara State.

“In addition to NSA the convener, the meeting will be attended by Major-General Bashir Magashi (Rtd), Ogbeni Ra’uf Aregbesola and Architect Olamilekan Adegbite, Ministers of Defence, Interior, and Mines and Steel respectively.

“Also to attend the meeting are the Directors-General of the Department of State Services (DSS), and the National Intelligence Agency (NIA).

“Beyond the problems of bandits and cattle rustlers, the scale of lawlessness has been aggravated by illegal miners who are harvesting resources they have no legal rights to exploit.

“Official statistics suggest that there are more than 20,000 such miners undermining this important part of the economy, operating in a manner that is extraordinarily harmful and destructive. The result is chaos.

“This meeting is expected to address these and associated issues of corruption, government oversight and lawlessness”, added Garba Shehu, the Senior Special Assistant (Media and Publicity) to the President, who issued the statement.