The repentant kidnap kingpin, Auwal Daudawa, has revealed that getting a gun is as easy as buying bread.
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Daudawa disclosed this in an exclusive interview with Daily Trust. not, TheNigerialawyer.
When questioned by our reporter on how he got his arms, he said: “I got it from around me.”
“So is it easy to get a gun?” he was asked.
“Yes! It’s just like you going to buy bread.”
His name suddenly shot into public reckoning when he was unmasked as the kingpin who orchestrated the kidnap of 340 schoolboys from a boarding school in Kankara, Katsina state.
Daudawu noted that the injustice he has experienced made him delve into banditry.
“It is because of injustice. Injustice in the sense that you had your own property and taking care of your family then government would now send officials to cart away everything while I have family to fend for.
“What would I do? Am I expected to survive on sand? I had a herd of cattle which I inherited from my parents but operatives were sent to take them from me and brought here (to Gusau). So I was challenged to sit up too.”
With the injustice experienced, Daudawu added that his herd of cows was confiscated by security agents in Zamfara. In return, he sold off his remaining assets to procure a gun.
“It was security agents who did it. I wouldn’t know who sent them but it was during the last administration (in Zamfara State). Security personnel and yan-sa-kai ¬(vigilantes) were the ones who took away the cattle.
“I told them that they should scrutinise the herd, if they find a single cattle belonging to another person they should not spare me. They did not find any stolen cow but they kept the entire herd. It was stolen. Tell me, what will I do with my life then?
“I was dependent on Allah and those cattle, but they took away everything. This was why I sold off my remaining assets and bought a gun to start this (banditry).”
After securing a gun, the repentant kidnapper said they began by engaging with members of the vigilante group in a battle and from there, he became a kidnapper.
“We just engaged members of the vigilante in a battle. Whatever village we overrun we cart away whatever is there which we consider as a booty. It is from there that we also began kidnapping.
“For us, we do that to avenge the atrocities committed on our people. People are being killed in the South but we did not hear of retaliation but here in the North one tribe is singled out for attack. For what reason? Why are we not being fairly treated? The way we are being killed and our property stolen, we just decided to take up arms; we intercept people on the road and anyone we see with a weapon as a vigilante, we kill him.”
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