More than 100 residents of Wurno Local Government Area in Sokoto State are being held captive by bandits, the council chairman, Alhaji Abba Isa Sadiq Achida, has revealed. He said attacks now occur almost daily, forcing thousands to leave their homes at night and seek shelter in Achida town, where they sleep in primary schools and other available spaces. "The people no longer sleep with their two eyes closed," Sadiq Achida said. He attributed the worsening security to suspected informants aiding the attackers and the blocking of major roads at night, especially during market days. While communities have begun supporting security agencies and forming vigilante groups, he urged the establishment of a military base in Achida and additional police divisions in Kwargaba, Chacho and other vulnerable areas. The council has started renovating the Achida Police Outpost. Sokoto State Commissioner of Police, Hayatu Hassan Shaffa, acknowledged the situation and said more personnel and resources would be deployed. He pledged that the police would not relent until safety was restored. A Daily Trust report detailed a April 17 attack on Achida town, where two people were killed and 23, including women and a 10-year-old boy, were abducted. In another incident, gunmen attacked Chacho village before a wedding, taking the bride, bridesmaids and nine other women. Community leaders said Chacho has suffered about 10 attacks in five years, with over 30 residents killed. Poor mobile network coverage has hampered distress calls, and vigilantes are often outgunned.
The chairman of Wurno council reports mass abductions and nightly displacement, yet calls for only more police outposts and a military base, not accountability for years of unchecked violence. Residents sleep in schools while over 100 remain captive, exposing the gap between official responses and the scale of suffering. If attacks have occurred almost daily with no decisive outcome, the current security approach is clearly inadequate. The state's promise of more personnel offers no assurance of change when past efforts have failed to prevent weddings from being raided or children abducted.
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