An 18-year-old orphaned girl has reportedly fled her neighborhood in Dan Marke, Dan Musa Local Government Area of Katsina State, after her guardians allegedly accepted a marriage proposal from a notorious bandit chief who threatened to burn down all the village if his demand was rejected.
The girl, recognized as Amina Sulaiman, disclosed this in a video interview in Hausa, printed on Friday by the Civilian Joint Task Force workplace in Funtua, Katsina State.
In the interview, Amina mentioned she had repeatedly rejected the marriage proposal, insisting that she would reasonably die than marry the armed prison.
“I told them I could not marry him and had previously told him that I did not love him. During one of those encounters, he struck me on the shoulder, and since then, I have been unable to lift heavy objects with that arm,” she mentioned.
She additional claimed that, regardless of figuring out the hazard she confronted, her guardians despatched her again to speak her rejection to the armed prison personally.
“They told me to go and tell him myself, even though they knew he could kill me. That was why I left and came here. I would rather die than marry him,” she mentioned.
When requested whether or not she needed to return to her village, Amina rejected the suggestion, saying she most popular to stay alone reasonably than be compelled into marriage with the bandit chief.
“I would rather continue living here on my own. I will never marry a bandit who survives by engaging in criminal activities,” she mentioned.
The alleged threat to burn down all the village if the marriage demand was rejected highlights the extent of intimidation and coercion reportedly confronted by residents of susceptible communities in components of Katsina State.
The incident additionally raises issues concerning the security of susceptible ladies and using violence and threats by armed teams to impose their will on rural communities.
