The Governor of Niger State, Umaru Mohammed Bago, has imposed a curfew in Minna, and ordered security agencies to apprehend individuals sporting dreadlocks or carrying firearms across the State.
The dusk to dawn curfew, which begins today, runs from 6pm to 6am, and all non-medical emergency movements restricted for commercial motorcyclists and operators of rickshaw, popularly called Keke.
At a security meeting in Minna, the state capital, the governor directed security personnel to arrest and forcibly shave anyone with dreadlocks, as well as impose fines on them.
He urged parents to caution their children, emphasizing that security agencies had been given the liberty to treat any non-security personnel found with a weapon as an armed robber.
The Governor vowed a zero-tolerance approach to security challenges by adopting a “fire-for-fire” policy.
He explained that community leaders were required to keep records of all visitors to their areas, warning that any house harbouring criminals or drug traffickers would be demolished, just as anyone attempting to harass security officers would face the full force of the law.
He reaffirmed the commitment to tackling insecurity in the State.
