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Argungu Emir advises communities to acquire weapons legally for self-defence against bandits
As insecurity persists unabated across the country, the Emir of Argungu, Alhaji Muhammad Samaila Mera, has advised his subjects to legally acquire weapons to protect their communities against bandit attacks.
He further urged residents across the emirate to remain vigilant and watchful against enemies and criminals within their communities.
The Emir reportedly stated this at a meeting with district heads, village heads and ward heads in his palace in Argungu, saying that communities should consider raising funds collectively to purchase legally approved weapons for self-defence.
“If you acquire such weapons legally, make sure the bandits are aware that your community possesses the means to defend itself. This alone can serve as a deterrent and discourage attacks,” he said.
According to him, Islam does not encourage people to remain helpless in the face of violence, just as it is not right for a Muslim to remain passive while criminals kill people, kidnap innocent citizens, and rape women.
“Be prepared to defend yourselves, your families, and your communities against any attack,” the Emir stated.
He expressed pain that many communities had become vulnerable because they lacked the means to defend themselves, adding: “When bandits attack, people start running, including village heads. This is happening because communities do not have adequate means of self-defence.”
He clarified that he was not encouraging communities to take the law into their own hands or engage in acts of terrorism, but rather advocating lawful self-defence, noting that the security challenge has become too overwhelming for security agencies alone to handle.
According to him, it was disheartening for communities to continue to lose lives without any form of resistance, while warning against ethnic violence and extrajudicial killings, stressing that he would not support anyone carrying arms to attack other ethnic groups or engage in unlawful killings.
