FG gazettes court judgement declaring bandits terrorists

The Federal Government has gazetted a court judgement that ordered it to declare bandits as terrorists.

The Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), gazetted the court judgement on Wednesday.

It will be recalled that Justice Taiwo Taiwo of the Federal High Court, Abuja, had in a judgement on November 25, 2021, granted an ex-parte application by the Federal Government for Yan Bindiga (Hausa word for gunmen) and Yan Ta’adda (Hausa word for terrorists) to be declared as terrorists but the regime of the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), did not do so after over a month.

Malami had disclosed during an interview on NTA on Tuesday, that his office was in the process of gazetting the court judgement, adding that the process would be concluded in a matter of days.

But a document released on Wednesday by Umar Gwandu, the Spokesperson to the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, showed that the AGF office had gazetted the court order.

The document titled, ‘Terrorism (Prevention) Proscription Order Notice, 2021’ is contained in Volume 108 of the Federal Republic of Nigeria Official Gazette.

It read in part, “Notice is hereby given that by the Order of the Federal High Court Abuja, in suit No. FHC/ABJ/CS/1370/2021 dated 25th November, 2021 as per the schedule to this Notice, the Activities of Yan Bindiga Group, Yan Ta’adda Group and other similar group in Nigeria are declared to be terrorism and illegal in any part of Nigeria, especially in the North West and North-Central Regions of Nigeria and are proscribed, pursuant to sections 1 and 2 of the Terrorism (Prevention) Act, 2011.

“Consequently the general public is hereby warned that any person or group of persons participating in any manner whatsoever in any form of activities involving or concerning the prosecution of the collective intentions or otherwise of the groups referred to in paragraph 1 of this Notice will be violating the provisions of the Terrorism (Prevention) Act, 2011 and liable to prosecution.”