Governor Bello Matawalle of Zamfara State has directed all residents of the state to hand over illegal firearms in their possession to a nearby police station within seven days of this directive.
The governor gave the directive while signing an order of declaration of a proclamation on the entire land of Zamfara State, as contained in a statement on Wednesday by his media aide, Zailani Bappa.
According to the statement, the directive followed the Presidential order of “shoot on sight” on persons caught with illegal firearms, in order to prevent the escalation of lawlessness in the state.
The declaration said: “In exercise of the powers conferred on me on that behalf, I Dr Bello Mohammed, make the following proclamation:
“The whole area of Zamfara State is declared to be a proclaimed district.
“All firearms in illegal possession of all persons in Zamfara State are to be handed over to the nearest Police station within seven days of this proclamation
“All Officers and Soldiers of the Armed Forces, Department of State Security Service, Nigerian Security and Civil Defense Corps are hereby conferred with powers of arrest of Police Officers,” the declaration concluded.
Mr Bappa noted that the governor appealed to citizens to abide by the law in order to curb the escalating security challenges in the state.
