Zamfara Community Finally Pays N20m ‘Protection’ Levy to Escape ‘Bandit Leader’s’ Wrath

Residents of Gidan-Goga Village of Maradun Local Government Area in Zamfara State have finally paid the twenty million naira levy imposed on them by the dreaded bandits’ leader, Bello Turji.

This paper recalled that the villagers were said to have been detained by Turji over the failure of their community to pay the full protection levy slammed on them within the required time frame.

He had asked them to pay the money on or before Sunday, November 27, or face his earth and threatened to attack the village if the money was not paid on or before the deadline.

Thereafter, the community mobilised seven members to deliver the amount they had raised at an agreed spot in Kasayawa.

It was gathered that seventeen loyalists of Turji came to the agreed meeting point to collect the money but they discovered the amount was incomplete and the terrorist leader was notified.

He hence ordered his boys to detain five out of the seven people that came to deliver the money at one of his camps in Jirari forest.

The villagers were only able to raise N10.6 million out of the twenty million naira Turji had imposed on them as some community members defaulted.

Meanwhile, an indigene of the area( name withheld) told newsmen that the money was paid on Sunday.

The source added some people who fled to other places had started returning to the village.

The source said:

“Many people including myself have returned to the village because of the payment of the levy.”

According to him, an additional amount of six million naira was also paid by the community for the release of the five people abducted by Turji’s men some weeks ago.

He said:

“We paid additional sum of N6 million for the release of five people abducted by the terrorists who belonged to Bello Turji’s camp.”

However, reports held that the spokesperson of the state police command, SP Mohammed Shehu, was yet to comment on the development as he could not be reached on phone as of press time.