A 12-year-old boy from Magami town in Gusau Local Government Area of Zamfara State has declared his intention to join the Nigerian Army after suspected bandits killed his father. The boy, identified as Umar, made the declaration in a video interview conducted in Hausa and shared on X by journalist Bakatsine on Tuesday. In the footage, Umar recounted how his father was attacked and killed shortly after returning from the farm with seven baskets of red pepper he had harvested and sold. He said the proceeds were used to buy food items, including rice, for the family to share a meal. Umar described how his father had gone back to the farm to fetch fresh pepper for soup when the assailants struck. "He came back after harvesting seven baskets of pepper. He bought food items and rice for us. He wanted us to cook and eat together, but as he was returning from the farm, they killed him," Umar said. The boy alleged that the attackers later broke into their home and assaulted other members of the household. When asked about his future, Umar stated his ambition to become a soldier, citing his father's killing as the reason. He expressed a desire to take revenge against those responsible for the attack.
A child now seeks to become a soldier because the state failed to protect his father from armed attackers in Zamfara. The promise of revenge by a 12-year-old underscores how cycles of violence are being passed to the next generation. When homes are no longer safe from armed intruders, recruitment into militancy begins not in barracks but in grief. The state's absence in Magami town is not a vacuum—it is a breeding ground.
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