TheCable

The house of representatives has asked the Nigeria Communications Commission (NCC) to shut down telecommunication services in three LGAs of Sokoto state.

The development comes days after NCC instructed all telecommunication companies to shut down their services in Zamfara over lingering insecurity in the state.

At Thursday’s plenary session, the green chamber said if the directive is replicated in Bodinga/Dange-Shuni/Tureta federal constituency of Sokoto, security operatives will be able to crack down on kidnappings and banditry.

The resolution followed the adoption of a motion sponsored by Shehu Kakale from Sokoto state.

Sokoto is among the north-western states that have seen a surge in banditry and kidnappings in recent times.

Leading the debate on the motion, Kakale said there has been “gruesome murder of innocent people” in the three LGAs in the last few weeks.

The lawmaker said the “unending senseless bloodletting, kidnappings, banditry, sexual molestation of women and arsons perpetrated by criminals and terrorists against innocent citizens” has heightened fear and confusion among residents.

He added that the attacks have displaced over 500 people who barely feed on a daily basis.

“Genuinely panicked and alarmed by the amassing numbers of bandits and terrorists in their hundreds flooding the forests of the aforementioned local governments from Zamfara state, more than 100 households with over 500 people and families are currently
displaced from Tureta and Dange-Shuni local governments into towns and urban areas or the local government headquarters with growing and worsening exodus of women, children and the vulnerable into the state capital of Sokoto city resulting in acute additional humanitarian crises in the state,” he said.

The motion was unanimously adopted after it was put to a voice vote by Femi Gbajabiamila, speaker of the house.

The house also asked the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) to provide relief items to affected communities.