By Pita Chib, Minna

The 31 Artillery Brigade of Nigerian Army has advised people to give credible information that would led to the arrest of bandits, cattle rustling and other criminal elements making life unbearable for the people .

Speaking at the Town Hall Meeting in Kagara community in Rafi Local Government Area of the state, on Thursday the Commander, 31 Artillery Brigade, Brigadier Gen. Gideon Temitope,  said the issue of security is the business of everybody.

Temitope said, severally we have come have asked if anybody know the locations of these bandits  so that can fish them out and deal with it but nobody responded for fear of being killed  after.

He said, "the truth of the matter is that people are not ready to shows us the locations of the bandits, despite our asking for it. Security is the business of everybody, is only God that knows everybody's location and i don't think that I am God nor the soldiers are God or the police. The truth about it is that we work with credible information.

"If you are prepared to show us their locations we will deal with them decisively and people will be free to go about their normal duties. Am assuring you that we will fish them out from their hiding place."

The Commander however tasked community to be their brothers keeper and always give right information that would assist the security agencies to carry out their duties in a well dignified manner as he assured them of adequate security.

He disclosed that town hall meeting is in line with the launched Ayem Akpatuma II sponsored by the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Tukur Buratai to curb the activities of the bandits and other criminal elements.

In his address, the former Chairman of Nigeria Union of Journalists, Niger state Council, Mohammed Mohammed, advised government to go back to traditional institutions to formulates ways to tackle insecurity challenges in the state.

Mohammed also emphasised  that security issue is not one man show, adding there must be established synergy among the security agencies to be able to fight bandits, cattle rustling and other criminal elements to standstill.

One of the community leaders, Abdul Adamu, told our correspondent that bandits have taken over their villages due mismanagement of information, informants are afraid to tell the locations of this evil ones in our midst .

Adamu said, " this meeting we are having now the informants of the bandits will go and tell them what we discussed in this meeting , they are enemy within."

He however begged army to use their military tactics to fish out these bandits so that the farmers of this community will go back to their farm work .

The Emir of Kagara, Alhaji Salihu Tanko, bitterly complained that his subjects do not go to farm these days for fear of being killed by the bandits.

Tanko pleaded with the government to deploy well equipped security agencies that would deal with these bandits once and for all, 'my people are suffering a lot'.