ZAMFARA, Nigeria – Nine months after a controversial suspension, Alhaji Aliyu Garba Marafa, the Emir of Birnin Yandoto, has been reinstated by Bello Matawalle, the governor of Zamfara State.
The suspension followed public outcry over the conferment of a traditional title to Ado Aliero, a notorious bandit kingpin in the North-Western State.
In a statement released on Sunday, April 23, 2023, Kabiru Balarabe, the Secretary to the State Government, explained that the Emir was reinstated because no evidence of guilt was found relating to the appointment of Aliero as a Fulani leader.
Balarabe stated, “This is to inform the public that, His Excellency, the Executive Governor of Zamfara State, Hon. Bello Mohammed Matawalle, has approved the reinstatement of Alhaji Aliyu Garba Marafa as the Emir of Birnin Yandoto.”
The decision to reinstate the Emir followed the recommendations of a committee formed to investigate the circumstances surrounding the traditional title’s conferment on the repentant bandit.
The committee found no ill motive or collaboration between the Emir and Aliero, and determined that the title was conferred as part of peace-building efforts between repentant bandits and communities affected by banditry in Tsafe and Gusau Local Government Areas, including Yandoto town.
The reinstatement of the Emir is effective immediately, marking an end to the controversy that has surrounded the leadership of the Birnin Yandoto emirate for the better part of a year.
