In what many Zamfara indigenes have discribed as sacrilegious looming time bomb, reports have confirmed the release of over 500 inmates convicted for boko haram and banditry activities by the Zamfara state government under the leadership of Governor Dauda Lawal.
In the last 11 hours, thousands of residents in Zamfara State have been thrown into a state of uncertainty following this reports of 291 inmates convicted for various boko haram activities and 219 convicted for banditry-related offences over the past six years have been secretly released from detention for reasons best described as a ploy to aide the People’s Democratic Party in the state to win 2027 elections.
According to insider sources at the Gusau Correctional Facility, those freed include 11 heads of boko haram strick forces along side 280 of their members and 19 hardened bandit kingpins and 200 of their members who were allegedly granted a secret state pardon by Governor Dauda Lawal sometime in September 2025.
Further information indicates that the released individuals were directed to the Zamfara State Zakkat and Endowment Board, which was reportedly tasked with facilitating their reintegration under what has been described as a religious amnesty arrangement.
Shockingly, among the beneficiaries of this alleged backdoor pardon were eight suspects arrested in January 2022 for offences bordering on criminal conspiracy, culpable homicide, trafficking in human parts, and acts of cannibalism.
The releases, said to include inmates originally convicted under previous administrations led by Senator Abdul’Aziz Yari and Bello Mohammed Matawalle—now the Minister of Defence—have sparked widespread concern among residents already grappling with insecurity.
Mallam Mohammed Sani Marafa, aged 67 who spoke with media correspondents noted that it is high time for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to declare state of emergency in Zamfara state.
“Our people upon hearing this ugly news are now restless, we doubt if anyone can sleep tonight with their eyes closed. We hear that they have been positioned to head election votes canvassers team in various wards in the state”, Mallam Marafa worriedly explains.
