‘I Swear by the Qur’an’ — Ex-Aide Alleges Matawalle’s Links to Bandits, Hit Squads

Bello Mohammed Matawalle, a former aide to the Minister of State for Defense, has accused his former principal of working with security personnel to kill alleged adversaries, defend supporters, and enable transactions with infamous bandit commanders while he was governor of Zamfara State.

According to reports, Matawalle was governor of Zamfara until 2023. In August of that year, Bola Tinubu nominated him Minister of State for Defense.

In an interview with the Hausa-language media outlet rHi Hausa, Musa Muhammad Kamara, popularly known as Musa Kamarawa, made the accusations.

When Matawalle was the governor of Zamfara State, Kamara claimed to have served as his Senior Special Assistant.

“My name is Kamara Musa Muhammad. He stated, “I am a citizen of Zamfara State and a former SSA to Dr. Bello Matawalle, the current Minister of Defense and former governor of Zamfara.”

According to Kamara, Matawalle collaborated with law enforcement to kill people he deemed adversaries while protecting others.

Kamara asserted, “He has police officers working for him who kill whoever he commands and spare whoever he chooses.”

Kamara claims that his issues started in 2021 when security personnel invited him due to claims that the Zamfara State Government had purchased cars for criminals.

He stated the allegations came when a cleric, Mallam Murtala Asada, purportedly said that government officials purchased cars for bandit leaders including Halilu Sububu and Bello Turji.

As part of an engagement approach at the time, Kamara claimed, “I explained to them that I’m SSA to the Governor and indeed the governor bought vehicles and gave them to them.”

He added that another car was purchased when one of the autos developed a problem.

He declared, “I was the one who got them another Hilux.”

During the interview, Kamara asked Matawalle to publicly refute the accusations under oath and again affirmed his statements by citing the Holy Qur’an.

He declared, “I swear by the Holy Qur’an that I’m speaking the truth,” adding that if the assertions were untrue, Matawalle should likewise swear on the Qur’an.

Kamara further claimed that Matawalle conspired with members of the Nigeria Police Force to target him once he started speaking in public.

“He plotted with the police.” Kamara said, “They sent them on errands to kill anyone he wanted to kill and free whoever he wanted to be free.”

He claimed that the prosecution’s persistent failure to call witnesses in court amounted to “media trials” in the cases brought against him.

Kamara denied any connection to the Zamfara State Government or its current leadership in response to rumors that he still maintains ties to them.

“I have not returned to Government House since the day I left when Matawalle was governor,” he declared, adding that he has no affiliation with the current administration.

Additionally, Kamara said that Matawalle then employed federal institutions to covertly end an investigation against him.

According to him, the case was moved to the Federal High Court in Abuja, where it ultimately failed for lack of proof.

“The case was discharged because there was no evidence and no witness,” he stated.

Kamara claimed he still worries about his safety even after the case was dismissed, claiming that influential people want him to be silenced.

He declared, “They only want to kill me and keep it quiet at any time; they do not want justice.”

Matawalle has not yet addressed the accusations in public as of the time this report was filed.