Zamfara State Governor Bello Matawalle says he is ready to resign if taking such a step will bring a lasting solution to the insecurity in his state.
He said this during a television interview on Wednesday.
Matawalle said he does not mind using his job as a sacrifice for peace to reign.
Zamfara is the epic-centre of banditry in the North West, comprising different armed gangs that unleash mayhem on the citizens day-after-day.
President Muhammdu Buhari had on Tuesday declared a non-fly-zone on Zamfara State due to the high level of insecurity, a decision that has been criticized by the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Matawalle said: “If I know that my resigning as a governor will make the people sleep with their two eyes closed, I can resign.
“I am ready to do what will bring security. I am not power-hungry. I have been having a sleepless night to protect the people of Zamfara state.”
Matawalle had favoured dialogue as the best way to end banditry in the state, a strategy he said had led to the rescue of over 1,000 people.
He said repentant bandits facilitated the release of students of Government Girls Secondary School, Jangebe, who were abducted last week.
President Buhari had faulted Matawalle’s approach, warning the governor to desist from giving money and vehicles to bandits in the name of negotiation.
Matawalle said: “People are saying amnesty, it is not about amnesty. What amnesty means maybe is the federal government provides some huge amount of money,” he said.
“Nobody gave amnesty to these people, we only convinced them to give them some trading in various skills as skills acquisition.
“We are not giving them kobo, we are not giving them anything. People talk about amnesty, it’s like people are thinking that a huge amount of money was collected and given to them.
“No single kobo was given to them, any of them who repented, nothing was given to them.”
