In a renewed bid to end years of bloodshed and instability, the Katsina State Government has opened peace talks with armed bandit groups across five local government areas of the state.
The dialogue, which began on Sunday in Kakumi town, Bakori Local Government Area, is said to involve representatives from Bakori, Kankara, Funtua, Kafur, and Malumfashi—communities that have suffered repeated attacks from armed gangs over the past decade.
Sources told PLATFORM TIMES that the meeting aims to broker a ceasefire, rebuild trust, and secure commitments from the criminal groups to halt hostilities in rural communities where hundreds have been killed or displaced.
Although officials have kept details of the negotiations under wraps, insiders say the dialogue is part of Governor Dikko Radda’s broader strategy to combine military pressure with non-violent reconciliation in restoring peace to Katsina’s volatile southern districts.
Katsina, one of the states most affected by banditry in Nigeria’s North-West, has experimented with similar peace deals in the past, often with mixed results. While some temporary truces reduced attacks, many of the armed groups later reneged on their promises and resumed killings, kidnappings, and cattle rustling.
Observers, however, note that this latest round of talks comes amid growing concern over the humanitarian toll of insecurity on rural farming communities.
In a related development, PLATFORM TIMES gathered that the Chairman of Sabuwa Local Government Area, Engineer Sagir Tanimu, recently attended a wedding ceremony involving relatives of some reconciled bandits in Kadawan Dandume village—an event seen as part of continuing efforts to rebuild trust between local authorities and Fulani communities in the forests.
Tanimu was reportedly joined by the Prince of Kogo Emirate, Alhaji Ibrahim Bello Kogo, and the District Head of Sabuwa during the ceremony.
However, residents and security watchers have warned that reconciliation efforts would only succeed if the armed groups publicly renounce violence and surrender their weapons.
A resident of Funtua who spoke under anonymity said, “We’ve seen these peace talks before. Until they drop their guns and face the law, peace will remain fragile.”
Katsina State remains one of the epicentres of Nigeria’s security crisis, with thousands displaced and communities deserted as bandit groups continue to wreak havoc across the state’s hinterlands.
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