Paradox Of Leadership And Matawalle’s Visit To Zamfara

Zamfara State continues to bleed. Communities remain under the siege of relentless banditry, kidnappings, and cold-blooded killings. Families mourn daily, farmers abandon their farms, and hundreds of settlements live in fear. Yet, in the heart of this crisis, what has captured national attention is not decisive action to restore order, but a political tour of the Minister of State Defence, HE Bello Matawalle, that has raised more questions than answers.

Matawalle’s recent political return to Zamfara State has exposed a disturbing contradiction: a stark paradox of leadership and a deep irony of responsibility. As the Minister responsible for superintending the defence and security architecture of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, one would expect that his presence in his home state would signal renewed commitment to tackling the spiralling insecurity. Instead, the visit was framed around political mobilization, rallies, and optics at a time when the people of Zamfara needed empathy, decisive action, and protection.

Matawalle arrived in Zamfara under an unusually heavy military escort, complemented with aerial surveillance drones and a convoy of armed security personnel. This display of force not only highlighted the personal security accorded to top government officials but also exposed the hypocrisy behind repeated government claims of “improved security” in Zamfara and across Northwestern Nigeria.
If security has indeed improved, why does a Minister of Defence require such extraordinary protection simply to visit his home state? A State he once governed.

While Matawalle was still in Zamfara State basking in political fanfare, reality struck with chilling force. A prominent APC stalwart and a former House of Representatives candidate in the 2023 elections and an attendee at Matawalle’s rally was ambushed and killed by armed bandits just a few kilometres outside Gusau.
This tragic incident underscored the undeniable reality that indeed Zamfara State is not safe, and the situation continues to worsen even as those responsible for securing the state engage in politics.

At the same time, there were reports of killings and abductions in Fegin Baza in Tsafe LGA and Anka LGA, further shattering any illusion of safety. Bandits operate freely, striking communities with impunity. Yet, the leadership entrusted with restoring peace remains distracted by political calculations.

As Matawalle toured the state with a military shield, another shocking incident occurred:
schoolgirls were kidnapped in neighbouring Zuru, Kebbi State, in a daring attack that once again exposed the fragility of our national security framework. The symbolic weight of this event occurring while the Defence Minister was in his own troubled state is impossible to ignore.

There is something extremely troubling about a leader saddled with the constitutional responsibility to protect lives, yet more visibly committed to political theatre than to frontline intervention. A Minister presiding over insecurity should not be celebrating rallies while citizens flee, grieve, and fear for their lives.
This contradiction forms the heart of the paradox: leadership without responsibility, authority without accountability.

One thing has become painfully clear that the Federal Government appears more interested in votes, political alignment, and 2027 electoral projections than in the safety of Nigerians, especially the people of Zamfara State.

Zamfara State has become a political pawn during elections and an abandoned territory afterward. But the people are watching, and their patience has thinned to its barest limits.

The people of Zamfara have endured enough neglect, enough political deception, and enough suffering. They can no longer be bought with political visits or empty assurances.
Time will reveal those who stood for the people and those who stood only for themselves.

For now, one truth remains undeniable that Zamfara State is in crisis, and no amount of political touring can hide that reality.

Dr Mannir Bature Tsafe