In a bid to ensure that the 2023 general elections are free, fair, credible and peaceful, Governor Aminu Masari of Katsina State has signed an executive order banning the use of thugs and other thuggery activities in the state.
The Governor through his special adviser on security matters, Ibrahim Katsina said the essence is to give the electorates free hand to elect leaders of their choice without intimidation.
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The security adviser, said since it is the last general election to be conducted in the life of the present administration, it is pertinent to make it free and peaceful as possible so as to set a pathway for other states to emulate.
He also added that, Governor Masari as an elder statesman will want to ensure a safe state especially as they are facing the task of returning it to its glorious past as the home of heritage and hospitality.
Katsina therefore advised politicians in the state to see the supposed thugs as their own sons and give them education or empowerment rather than destroy their lives by engaging them in thuggery.
Chairman of the Coalition of Civil Society Organizations in the state, Abdulrahman Abdullahi commended Masari for the ban saying, it will go a long way to ensure smooth electioneering campaigns and peaceful general elections.
He therefore said if the state government can implement the order to its fullest, it will be the best parting gift the governor has given the people of the state.
(Editor Paul Akhagbemhe)