No fewer than three policemen were reportedly killed during a renewed bandit attack on Sunday in Tangani and Sayaya communities of Musawa and Matazu Local Government Areas of Katsina State.

The leader of the main opposition party, African Democratic Congress in Katsina State, and former Minister of State for Education, Lawal Batagarawa, disclosed the killing while briefing journalists on the deadly attack in Katsina on Sunday.

He condemned the persistent loss of lives, particularly in the northern region of Nigeria.

According to him, “On behalf of the ADC National Headquarters and the Katsina State chapter, I condole the people of Matazu, Musawa, Tangani, Sayaya, and the entire districts of Musawa and Matazu. While we were in the middle of receiving the sad news of the attack, it was taking place in Matazu, where three policemen and some townspeople were martyred. The other surrounding villages I mentioned earlier were also attacked.

“This is a very sad reality. It is a sad everyday reality in Katsina, Zamfara, Sokoto, Kebbi, Niger, Plateau states, and several other parts of the country. This is the unfortunate situation regarding insecurity.

“We call upon the Federal Government, in conjunction with state governments, to discharge the responsibility they swore to uphold. That responsibility is to secure lives and property. The basic duty of every government is to provide security for lives and properties.

“Without security for lives and property, the entire human endeavour is undermined. Without security, society moves towards anarchy or complete collapse. The Federal Government is showing absolute irresponsibility in the way it is handling the issue of insecurity,” he said.

Batagarawa also sympathised with the people of Katsina State and the Nigeria Police Force over the killings.

“In the meantime, on behalf of all of us, we sympathise with the people of Musawa, Matazu, and the surrounding districts over today’s events. May Allah comfort those who lost their loved ones,” he added.

As of the time of filing this report, there was no official statement from the police confirming the number of casualties.

Details later… (The PUNCH, but headline rejigged)

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