#KankaraAbduction: Disagreement, Pressure Forced Daudawa Back To Death

Auwalun Daudawa, a terrorist and mastermind of the abduction of over 300 students of Government Science Secondary School Kankara, Katsina State, Northwest Nigeria was killed in a forest in Zamfara by a rival terrorist group, according to multiple reports. 

Daudawa was shot dead by a rival armed group while attempting to retrieve his rustled cows at Dumburum forest, located between Zurmi Local Government in Zamfara State and Batsari Local Government in Katsina State.

A source in the state said that contrary to reports that Daudawa betrayed the peace pact he had with the Zamfara State Government not to return to the forest, “he stayed in the state capital until recently when his animals were taken away”.

He also linked his return to the forest to a recent killing in Kankara where the government pressured him to name those involved. 

“There was a killing in Kankara and the state government asked him to account for who and who was responsible for the killing. He didn’t agree to drop their names and at that moment he decided to pick arms and track his cows, he was killed as a result.”

Security sources say Daudawa would have also been killed by either a rival group or those within his own group because of his proximity with the state government.

“It was only a matter of time, he stands a chance to be killed either by a rival group or within his own group because of his involvement with the government.”

“The animosity between the Zamfara State Government and the armed groups keeps growing. They feel they have been betrayed by this government that failed to fulfil their promise and yet set them up with former fighters still in the bush. Over 100 so-called repentant fighters are back to violence.”

Daudawa’s death was announced Friday, April 30 by Ibrahim Bello Zauma, media aide to Bello Matawalle, Governor of Zamfara State via a tweet .

“Just in: Barely nine days after Auwalun Daudawa returned to the jungle after swearing an oath on the Glorious Quran never to go back to banditry, he met his waterloo! He was killed while trying to rustle,” Zauma tweeted.

After the abduction and release of the schoolboys which attracted widespread condemnation, Daudawa signed a peace pact with the Zamfara State Governor not to return to the forest again.

Daily Trust reported that Daudawa relocated to one of the forests near the border with Katsina three months after his celebrated repentance. 

The late terrorist had surrendered to the Zamfara state government in an amnesty deal, swearing an oath with the Qur’an not to return to crimes and criminality. 

Daudawa had been an armed robber and a cattle rustler but had formed an alliance with the terror group Boko Haram, the Guardian reported.

The report said that Daudawa was bringing in weapons from Libya, where he had received training from Jihadists.

Northwest Nigeria has in recent times, been at the receiving end of violent crimes perpetrated by terrorists locally known as bandits.

The ‘bandits’ rustle cows, kill and maim innocent citizens, kidnap adults and children while demanding outrageous fees as ransom. Daudawa was one of them.

At some point, Daudawa had forged an alliance with the terror group Boko Haram and became their gunrunner, taking guns stolen from the Nigerian military in raids and ambushes.

On December 12, 2020,  Daudawa had reportedly spearheaded the audacious abduction of over 300 schoolboys from Kankara, on the orders of Abubakar Shekau, leader of the Boko Haram terror group.

Barely two months after the criminal mastermind led the abduction of the schoolboys, he surrendered to authorities, claiming to have voluntarily repented of his crimes. 

Twenty AK 47 rifles, ammunition and a rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) launcher were recovered from Daudawa and five of his gang members who equally surrendered.