By FRANCIS SARDAUNA

The Katsina State Government has said it has expended the sum of over N4.2 billion on infrastructure, logistics and security personnel allowances to tackle the wave of banditry and kidnapping bedevilling the state from June 2015 to August 2020.

The Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Dr. Mustapha Inuwa, disclosed this to journalists on Monday while unveiling the state government’s scorecard under his office.

He said: “By way of summary, the state government’s financial support on security through the office of the Secretary to the Government of the state in terms of infrastructure, logistics and security personnel allowances from June 2015 to August, 2020 is as follows:

“January to December 2015 (N691,985,088.00); January to December 2016 (N827,449, 214.30); January to December 2017 (N749,415,948.40); January to December 2018 (N590,029,000.00); January to December 2019 (N682,311,000.00) and January to August 2020 (N732,569,230.00), totally N4,273,759,480.70”.

He said aside the provision of office and residential accommodation for security agencies, the state government has been bankrolling a series of security operations ranging from Operation Sharan-Daji, Mesa, Puff Adder, Sahel Clean and Diran Mikiya.

Inuwa said the unflinching effort of the state government in synergy with security agencies has drastically reduced the incidents of banditry, kidnapping for ransom and cattle rustling afflicting the state.

Consequently, he said over 700 firearms have been recovered from repentant herders and bandits and 34,148 rustled animals were also recovered and returned to their rightful owners in the state. (THISDAY)

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