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During the administration of Bello Matawalle, who is currently Nigeria’s Minister of State for Defense, notorious bandit leader Bello Turji has publicly acknowledged that he had peace negotiations with Zamfara State government officials.

The disclosure has sparked new debate over previous talks with armed groups in the North-West.

In response to allegations that he received ₦30 million during the peace engagement, Turji made the revelation.

He denounced the accusation as untrue and deceptive and vehemently denied it.

He claims that he never received any such payment during the negotiations.

The bandit leader accused former Zamfara State government peace negotiator Musa Kamara of distributing false information in an audio clip that is presently making the rounds online.

He stated that he had never owned ₦30 million in his lifetime and called the claim a payout “a lie.”

“By Allah, since I was born, I have never possessed even five million naira,” Turji said. “What I am doing is not for personal gain. We were never given that ₦30 million you are talking about.”

Turji clarified that the meeting with government representatives was a component of a peace initiative meant to put an end to bloodshed in Zamfara State.

The bandit leader accused Kamara of violating the trust established during the negotiations and insisted that the talks were not intended for financial gain.

“We agreed on peace when the Zamfara State government appointed you,” Turji said. “But what you are saying now is full of lies. I did not even receive three million naira.”

In addition to refuting the payment claim, Turji accused former political figures in the states of Zamfara and Sokoto of being to blame for the region’s ongoing instability.

He claimed that certain prior governors armed organizations and promoted the formation of vigilantes who, in his opinion, targeted Fulani communities.

Turji asserted, “We openly say that Ahmed Sani Yerima and former governors of Zamfara and Sokoto are responsible for the calamities that befell these states.”

He demanded that they be arrested and that their purported roles be thoroughly investigated.

Turji made an effort to disassociate himself from politics in the message, claiming that no political figure is supporting or shielding him. He said that the unfairness and insecurity his people experienced were the driving forces behind his acts.

“We are not politicians, and we are not tools of politicians,” he said. “There is no human being backing us.”

Despite his assertions, Turji did not respond to the many charges that connected him to kidnappings, mass murders, and the uprooting of villages throughout Zamfara and surrounding regions.

Rather, he presented his remarks as a self-defense, claiming that he was speaking “before Allah alone.”

But Bello Turji has long been recognized by security services as one of the most dangerous leaders of armed groups active in the northwest of Nigeria. His network is being targeted by current operations, and the military has previously proclaimed him wanted for terror-related acts.

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