A new terror group, known as Mahmuda, has emerged in the North Central part of Nigeria, leaving several feared dead.
Findings revealed that members of the group have been attacking communities around the Kainji Lake National Park (KLNP) with impunity in recent times.
The national park is located in North Central Nigeria, spanning parts of Kwara and Niger, respectively.
According to the findings, some affected communities are located in the Kaiama Local Government Area (Kemaanji, Tenebo, Baabete, Nuku, Nanu) and the Barutein Local Government Area (villages in Yashikira District), both in Kwara State.
Further information revealed that the group has also taken control of communities in Babana and Wawa District in the Borgu Local Government of Niger State.
The Sunday Tribune reported that the militants attacked a vigilante group on Wednesday in Kemanji.
According to our source, “they called themselves the Mahmuda group. Their leader in a voice note is threatening all the communities. They kill, kidnap victims, and demand ransom without being challenged.
“The surge of insecurity in Nigeria has been a source of concern to the citizenry because of its destructive factor to livelihood, and unfortunately, new militant groups continue to emerge and occupy the ungoverned spaces in the country.
“With the Kainji Lake National Park left unguarded, the loggers, fishermen, and hunter groups take the opportunity and start enjoying the common good of the citizens for their gain.
“At the beginning, there was a clash between the loggers and the militants as well as the vigilantes, but the loggers negotiated with the militants, and the loggers gained access to the forest to harvest trees without any hitches and this as well serves as the biggest opportunity for the militant to make money through the logging activities.
“However, a recent audiotape record from the militant claims to be a moderate Islamist; this assertion confirms that they are a sect of Boko haram that broke away from the Shekau-led extremist group. Regrettably, the locals are gradually being recruited into their ranks as informants. They referred to themselves as the Mahmuda Group or Mallam Group, their leader’s name, and a jihadist fighting to promote the cause of the Sunni group.
“The militant group mainly speaks Hausa. The saddened reality is that the activities of these militants, controlling a vast territory of 3970.29 sq. km of the Nigerian state, have resulted in the community members living at the mercy and dictates of the nonstate actor. Living at the mercy and dictates of the militants manifests in various ways.
“First, the herders within the park pay dues (zakah) to the militants to allow them to graze their cattle. Second, the farmers to whom the militant allocates farmland within the forest also pay farming levies to the militants. Third, the militants forced the residents to work on their farms as sadaka. Fourth, members of the community are kidnapped and made to pay ransom. Fifth, illegal mounting of roadblocks along the community, regulating social activities, particularly the sale of alcohol and all forms of smoking, and even settling disputes among the community’s Members
“Sixth, the militants threaten the existence of herbalists that they assume are fortifying the community vigilante members to confront them.
Unconfirmed reports also indicate that the Mahmuda Group, also known as the Mallam Group, is allegedly engaging in illegal mining within the park environment.
