Zamfara State Governor, Hon. Bello Mohammed Matawalle, said on Thursday that his government would not treat the issue of repatriating Almajsris with a mere wave of hands following the northern governors’ resolution in their last meeting.
Governor Matawalle explained that he has since directed the state Commissioners of Information and Religious Affairs, Aljaji Suleiman Tinau Anka and Sheikh Tukur Jangebe, respectively, to go round the state and collect data and identities of the Almajeries in the state with a view to knowing their States of origin.
In a statewide broadcast at the Governor’s residence in Gusau, the state capital, Matawalle noted that apart from the global challenges of coronavirus popularly known as COVID_19, the Almajeris also constitute public nuisance, ridiculing the northern part of Nigeria with their unlslamic culture.
“It has become very imperative that we must stop this and do something about this Almajeri system of a thing because the system is not even Islamic,” he said.
According to the Governor, the closure of Zamfara borders would reduce the influx of the Almajeris, which he said that the closure has been extended to another two weeks, saying that all necessary testing equipment have been provided to ensure that positive measures are put in place to prevent the dreaded disease.
“Although there is no confirmed case of COVID-19 in Zamfara State, but we cannot rely on this fact. We must do every within our power to ensure that we give the coronavirus a tough fight.”
However, the governor further said that his administration has concluded plans to establish three mobile courts in the three senatorial districts of the state were anybody found guilty concerning coronavirus cases would be tried, pointing out that the state government has distributed test kits to all the health personnel in the borders.
He said that anybody tested COVID-19 positive would be referred to any of the three isolation centres in Gusau, stressing that his administration was very much aware that coronavirus has been ravaging neighboring States in the northwest zone, saying that he is mindful of the ugly situation.
Matawalle, therefore, warned that any influx of people into the state, the security agencies would be held responsible, noting that he would not want to hear any excuse from the security agencies manning the borders.
“The security agencies manning the borders should strengthen their system and increase their workforce to meet their target. Security agencies, ZAROTA have been included in the COVID-19 task force in the state.”
