The Nigerian military has once again assured Nigerians that notorious bandits’ leader, Bello Turji, is being tracked and will be eliminated very soon.
The Chief of Defence Operations, Major General Emeka Onumajuru, disclosed this during an interview on Channels Television’s breakfast programme, The Morning Brief, on Monday.
Major General Onumajuru said that the military is aware of Turji’s current location but said he will not discuss that further.
“First, I need to let you know that there is absolutely no forth and back between Bello Turji and the armed forces.
“As I speak Bello Turji is hiding, completely in hiding and the armed forces is tracking him, the Armed Forces continuously track him and very soon he will be eliminated,” Major General Onumajuru said.
He appealed to Nigerians to be patient with the Armed Forces, saying that tracking a bandit leadership can take time in some cases, but assured that it won’t be too long before Turji is brought down and his operation in the Northwestern part of the country ended.
‘Don’t pay levy to Turji’
A Sokoto State Lawmaker, Honourable Aminu Almustapha Boza, last week confirmed the presence of Turji in one of the forests in Isa Local Government Area of Sokoto State.
The Lawmaker, who represents Sabon Birni Local Government Area in the state House of Assembly, told our correspondent in a telephone chat that Turji has been collecting tax from the people in the area.
However, Major General Onumajuru has urged the people of Sokoto to call Turji’s bluff and refrain from paying the tax, assuring them of the military’s protection.
“Talking about Bello Turji imposing fines, remember I did talk about protecting vulnerable communities. Now, the communities need to believe that the Armed Forces are protecting them and when they believe that it’s a question of calling anybody that asks you for protection money or ransom money bluff because the Armed Forces is there to protect you.
“So, I want to ask the communities now through your medium, do not accede to request for protection levy in whatever form because we have troops who guarantee farms security, who open space to go about your normal activities,” Major General Onumajuru said.
This is not the first time the military is promising to get hold of Turji who has been tormenting the North-West region for a long time.
During Channels Television’s 2024 Year-In-Review programme on December 31, 2024, Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa, vowed that the Armed Forces would arrest the notorious bandits kingpin.
Gen Musa said it is only a matter of time before the military gets hold of Turji who have wreaked havoc in Sokoto, Zamfara and Kebbi communities, despoiling and kidnapping residents for hefty ransom.
“The update is that since he knows we’ve been after him, he has been operating underground and we are conducting operations,” the CDS said when asked for an update on Turji who has been on the run for a while.
“What we have been doing, of recent, is that we are picking everybody close to him; all those giving him support in one way or the other, we have picked them, we have killed his commanders. It’s just a matter of time,” the defence chief added
