‘We Refused to be Part of It’ – Gov Sule Disowns Miyetti Allah Vigilante Group

Governor Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa State has broken his silence on the creation of the Nomad Vigilante Group by the Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore, a Fulani socio-cultural organization in Nigeria. Despite being invited by the group as a Special Guest during the inauguration of the outfit, Governor Sule has categorically denied any involvement in its formation. DAILY POST reports that the Nomad Vigilante Group was inaugurated on January 17, 2024, at the City Square in Lafia, with representatives from conventional security agencies in attendance.

However, Sule, while receiving members of the Nasarawa State House of Assembly on a congratulatory visit over his recent victory at the Supreme Court, stated that the state government did not participate in the creation of the vigilante group. According to him, if the establishment of such a group was government-led, a bill would have been forwarded to the State Assembly for consideration, clarifying that the issue was currently under investigation by the country’s conventional security agencies. “The security agencies are already investigating the issue. We refused to be part of it because it was purely an issue of the security agencies,” the Governor stated.

Governor Sule explained that the state government does not recognize the Nomad Vigilante, just like any other vigilante groups in the state, emphasizing that the only vigilante group recognized by both the Federal Government and the state is the community policing initiative. He said, “As far as we are concerned, there is only one vigilante group recognized by the Federal Government, which we also recognized in the state. We have recognized community policing. “If anybody should know that the government has recognized any vigilante group, you should know more because that bill should have come to you as lawmakers, and you should be the one to pass the bill before we can do that.”

The inauguration of the Nomad Vigilante Group has sparked nationwide condemnation, leading to the recent speculation that the DSS arrested Alhaji Abdullahi Bello Bodejo, the president of Miyetti Allah, for interrogation. But the DSS denied the report, stating that Bodejo was never in its custody.

Source: Daily Post