Abdullahi Tsowa killed by bandits
By Mohammed Abdullahi
Mohammed Abdullahi, a concerned and worried indigene of Esun Tauheed in Edu local government area of Kwara State is crying and appealing to both the state and federal governments to immediately come to their aid over recent killings and kidnappings in Edu and Patigi local government areas of the state, by bandits.
Find below, the save our soul message sent to DAYLIGHT over the weekend, by traumatised Abdullahi, a medical student at the Kwara State University, who recently lost one of his nephews to the bandits.
“For over three months now, our communities in Edu and Patigi Local Government Areas of Kwara State have been under relentless attack by bandits. These criminal elements have turned once peaceful villages into killing fields. They operate not only at night but also in broad daylight, with no atom of fear, abducting, robbing, and killing our loved ones.
The efforts of government so far can best be described as token and ineffective. What we see are long epistles of sympathy released after every tragedy, yet nothing concrete is done to confront these evils or bring their perpetrators to justice.
The toll on our communities is staggering. In just three months, more than one hundred lives have been lost to bandit attacks. Families are devastated daily, and ransom payments have drained the little wealth we have—over ₦200 million has been collected by these bandits as ransom so far. Despite these payments, safety is not guaranteed. The crisis has taken an even deadlier dimension, where victims are now abducted and killed without any demand for ransom.
A fresh tragedy occurred only this week. My nephew, Abdullahi Tsowa, was abducted on the 21st of August, 2025, at Esun Tauheed. Today, we buried him after his lifeless body was discovered. He was killed without the slightest negotiation. To my nephew, I say: May Allāh accept your soul into paradise. But to the state and federal governments, I ask: how many more Abdullahi Tsowas must be buried before action is taken?
It is no secret that the locations of these bandits are known to security agencies. However, our soldiers and police are not adequately equipped to confront them. The last time our local vigilante group attempted to dislodge the bandits, over 30 of them were gunned down in a single day. That tragedy has crippled local resistance and deepened the climate of fear across Edu and Patigi.
We are not safe. Our farmers cannot go to their fields. Our traders cannot move freely. Our children cannot sleep at night. The economic and psychological damage is beyond words. Entire communities are on the brink of displacement, and many families are starving, unable to sustain their daily lives.
We demand urgent intervention. The government must act beyond condolences and press releases. We need real security presence—equipped, motivated, and proactive enough to dislodge these criminals and restore peace to Edu and Patigi. If this level of banditry and bloodshed continues unchecked in a state under a sitting Governor, then governance itself has failed.
Our cry is simple: we want to live in peace. We want to farm, to trade, to raise our children without fear of abduction or death. If the government cannot provide that, then of what use is the government?
The people of Edu and Patigi deserve protection. We deserve justice. And above all, we deserve the right to life and dignity.”
