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Crisis Rocks Zamfara Assembly, Parallel Sittings Hold
The Zamfara State House of Assembly has been factionalised with the emergence of two parallel Assembly sittings being conducted by its members, all urging Governor Dauda Lawal to represent the 2025 appropriation bill and address insecurity in one month.
Two separate assembly sittings were held on Wednesday. Ten out of 24 members of the state assembly whom the State Speaker purportedly suspended, Hon Bilyaminu Ismail Moriki, were conducted under Hon Bashar Aliyu Gummi as factional speaker. At the same time, the other side was also held under the state speaker, Hon. Bilyaminu Ismail Moriki.
During the sitting, all the members contributed to the issue of insecurity, Governor Dauda Lawal’s breach of the nation’s constitution, and the indiscriminate dismissal of state civil servants without actual reason.
The lawmakers who reinforced the selection of Hon Bashar Aliyu Gummi as Speaker when the whole house impeached Speaker Moriki early last year for alleged highhandedness and misconduct, among other things, sat in Gusau today, Wednesday, to make far-reaching decisions of public interest.
After deliberations that lasted about two hours, the factional Speaker, Hon. Bashar Aliyu Gummi, representing Gummi 1 State constituency, announced that the members have issued a one-month ultimatum to Governor Dauda Lawal, within which all issues surrounding armed banditry, kidnapping, and other heinous crimes must be resolved.
The factional members, who cut across the political parties of the APC and the PDP, lamented how the state government seemed to be comfortable with the unfortunate security situation in the state.
They accused Governor Dauda of spending vast sums of money on trivial matters. At the same time, poverty and insecurity have taken over the whole 14 local government areas of the state, at a time the state government refused to show sympathy to victims of either bandits’ attack or those who lost their loved ones to the bandits.
They recalled that their purported suspension followed their refusal to remain silent while the carnage by bandits continued unabated in the state.
The lawmakers urged the state government to change its attitude of not supporting security agents who sacrifice their lives to defend citizens by ensuring that it gives them all the necessary support.
Similarly, the lawmakers who expressed sadness at the poor support of the Dauda Lawal-led administration to the security, blamed the government for not adequately equipping its own Security Protection Guards (Askarawa), which they also said led to the killing of over half of the squad in their numerous confrontations with criminals.
They noted that the governor could comfortably assist families of slain members of the Security Protection Guards who lost their lives in the line of duty, “even from his N2 billion monthly Security vote.” They urged him to immediately address that, even with N10 million for each affected family.
They implored the state government to immediately rescind its decision, which saw the sacking of over 4,000 civil servants without due process, noting that this was detrimental to the state, particularly owing to Zamfara’s insecure posture.
The factional law makers argued that if so-called friends of the governor, particularly those coming from Niger, Kaduna and Adamawa states could be building multi billion naira mansions and buying properties in their respective states shortly after visiting their Zamfara governor friend, the governor would not have any moral right nor justification to downsize the state workforce with the flimsy excuse of inadequate resources.
Accordingly, they maintained that all those sacked should be returned to their duty posts and their denied salaries and other entitlements should be paid in arrears. They also described their suspension as “illegal, misleading and unfounded. Saying how can an impeached speaker, by 18 out of 24 members, suspend other members
With this development, a new political development emerged with two parallel House of Assembly sittings.
Members who attended the parallel sittings include: Hon. Aliyu Ango Kagara, Member Representing Talata Mafara South, Hon. Ibrahim Tudu Tukur Bakura, Member Representing Bakura, Hon. Nasiru Abdullahi Maru, Member, Representing Maru North. Hon. Faruk Musa Dosara, Member representing Maradun 1, Hon Bashar Aliyu, Member representing Gummi 1, Hon Barrister Bashir Abubakar Masama, Member representing Bukkuyum North, Hon Amiru Ahmed, Member representing Tsafe West, Hon Basiru Bello, Member representing Bungudu West and Hon Mukhtaru Nasiru, Member representing Kaura Namoda North.
From Amos Tauna, Kaduna
A northern-based civic group, the Concerned Northern Forum (CNF), has raised the alarm over what it describes as the deliberate delay by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to investigate former Zamfara State governor, Bello Matawalle, despite multiple petitions and earlier commitments by the agency.
Speaking at a press conference in Kaduna on Monday, CNF Chairman, Alhaji Aliyu Muhammad Sani, said the EFCC’s inaction was “raising serious questions” about its independence and willingness to go after powerful individuals.
According to him, the group alongside other civil society bodies, had submitted petitions as far back as May and September 2024, detailing how Matawalle allegedly mismanaged a colossal amount of money in state funds during his tenure from 2019 to 2023.
“We have seen the EFCC take bold steps against other former governors and ministers. So we are asking: why the silence in this case? Who is shielding Matawalle from investigation?” Sani queried.
The CNF pointed to official financial data and loan records to back its claims, insisting that the former governor should be made to explain how federal allocations and borrowed funds running into hundreds of billions were utilised.
Sani stated that the EFCC itself, in a statement issued in May 18, 2023, had confirmed through its then Director, Media and Public Affairs, Osita Nwajah, said that EFCC is investigating Matawalle over allegations of monumental corruption award of plantom vontracts and diversion of over N70 billion, lamenting that more than a year later, nothing concrete had come out of that investigation.
The Zamfara State Lawyer Forum has endorsed the Nigerian House of Representatives’ decision to summon Zamfara State Governor Dauda Lawal and leaders of the state’s House of Assembly, amid a deepening crisis within the legislature and escalating insecurity across the northwestern state.
The forum, a prominent legal advocacy group, described the summons as a constitutionally valid exercise of legislative oversight, citing Sections 88 and 89 of Nigeria’s 1999 Constitution, which empower the National Assembly to investigate matters of public interest and summon relevant officials.
Barrister Aisha Muhammed, the forum’s chairperson, said in a statement on Sunday that the House’s action was “legally valid, constitutionally supported, and deeply necessary” to uphold democratic governance and the rule of law.
She argued that Governor Lawal and state assembly leaders must answer questions regarding the suspension of seven elected assembly members and the controversial declaration of a lawmaker’s seat vacant—actions she said raised “grave constitutional questions” and potentially breached democratic norms.
“Governors and assembly leaders must not invoke immunity as a shield against legitimate oversight,” Muhammed said, referencing Section 308 of the Constitution, which grants immunity from judicial processes but does not exempt officials from non-coercive legislative inquiries.
“Accountability is the lifeblood of constitutional democracy. No public office holder, no matter how highly placed, is above the people’s right to transparency.”
The House of Representatives Committee on Public Petitions issued the summons on Friday, directing Governor Lawal, his Benue counterpart Hyacinth Alia, and their respective state assembly leaders to appear before it on 8 May.
The move follows a petition by the Guardians of Democracy and Rule of Law, a civil rights group, highlighting worsening insecurity and legislative dysfunction in both states.
Zamfara has been plagued by rampant banditry, with recent attacks claiming dozens of lives, including six community protection guards and four vigilantes in Anka Local Government Area on 22 March, and 20 gold miners in Maru Local Government Area on 24 April.
The state’s legislative crisis, marked by factionalism and alleged executive interference, has further compounded governance challenges.
Muhammed criticised Governor Lawal’s apparent acquiescence to the assembly’s controversial actions, calling for “legal and moral scrutiny”.
She stressed that the National Assembly’s intervention was not only lawful but obligatory to preserve constitutional order and address public grievances.
“The key question is not whether the Governor or the Speaker can be summoned, but [what] they have [to say in response to] questions to answer,” she said.
Armed men suspected to be bandits launched a deadly attack on Saturday night, killing several vigilante members and civilians in a coordinated assault on three villages in Gwana District, Alkaleri Local Government Area of Bauchi State.
The Nation gathered that the affected communities—Mansur, Digare, Sabuwar Sara, and Yalo—were ambushed while residents were asleep.
Most of the victims were members of local vigilante groups from Gwana and Duguri Districts, who had been safeguarding their communities from repeated attacks along the volatile borders of Gombe, Plateau, and Taraba States.
Sources reported that the assailants, heavily armed and ruthless, opened fire indiscriminately, catching the villages off guard in the middle of the night.
This latest attack is part of a troubling pattern of violence in the region, which has included killings, cattle rustling, and growing insecurity.
It has drawn the attention of Governor Bala Mohammed and top security officials, who have visited the area for assessments.
The Bauchi State Police Command confirmed the incident but has yet to provide an official death toll.
Police Commissioner Sani-Omolori Aliyu, during a visit to the affected areas, described the assault as “utterly reprehensible” and a significant threat to public safety.
He ordered the immediate deployment of tactical teams and vowed a sustained manhunt for the attackers.
Police spokesperson Ahmed Wakil, in a statement on Monday, said the ambush occurred during a routine patrol by local hunters along the Bauchi–Plateau forest corridor.
The confrontation resulted in casualties on both sides, including fleeing civilians and community defenders.