Terrorism for Malami’s One-Barrel, Amnesty for Tinubu’s Very Peaceful Bandits

9 January, 2026

by Mohammed Bello Doka 

The gun attached to this story is the exact replica in type and class of the firearm listed in the terrorism charges that followed Abubakar Malami. It is a single-barrel, break-action, single-shot 12-gauge shotgun, commonly called a one-barrel. The charge sheet specifies “one Sturm Magnum 17-0101 firearm” with Redstar AAA 5.20 cartridges—standard 12-gauge shells. No automatic fire. No magazine. No military pedigree. No official photo of the seized item has been released.

This alleged discovery occurred in Birnin Kebbi, a volatile security environment where bandits routinely operate and openly brandish military-grade weapons. In the same geography where criminals carry assault rifles with impunity, a civilian-grade one-barrel becomes the basis for terrorism.

Now place that beside what Nigerians have seen—clearly, repeatedly, and in print.

In 2024, Premium Times published “PHOTOS: Wanted Katsina terrorists hold peace talks”, complete with images of armed bandit leaders at negotiations in Katsina State. Assault rifles were visible. No disarmament. No arrests. The headline and photographs remain on record.

https://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/top-news/813644-photos-wanted-katsina-terrorists-hold-peace-talks.html

In 2024, TheCable reported statements by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser on Information and Strategy to President Bola Tinubu, confirming that security agencies contacted bandits to secure the release of abducted worshippers in Kwara State. Onanuga said the approach was non-kinetic.

https://www.thecable.ng/onanuga-dss-military-contacted-bandits-to-release-38-kwara-church-worshippers/

The same year, on Arise News, Onanuga explained why force was avoided: civilians live near bandit hideouts.

https://www.arise.tv/onanuga-security-agencies-know-bandits-and-their-hideouts-but-risk-to-civilians-slows-strikes/

Also in 2024, Punch Newspapers reported lawmakers warning that negotiating with bandits legitimises criminality, signals weakness, and incentivises kidnappings—an internal alarm that peace-by-handshake was backfiring.

https://punchng.com/abduction-crisis-tinubu-declares-emergency-as-nass-rejects-bandit-negotiations/

So here are the facts, dated and sourced. Armed bandits carrying AK-pattern rifles attend peace talks and are treated as stakeholders. A man with a single-shot shotgun faces terrorism.

Who is that man?

Abubakar Malami is not a fringe actor. He is a founding member of the APC, a former Attorney-General of the Federation, and a long-time insider who was celebrated within the APC. He later criticised worsening insecurity in the North, left the APC, joined the African Democratic Congress (ADC), and declared his intention to contest the Kebbi governorship. After that sequence, the hammer fell.

Since his defection, Malami has been consistently attacked by political thugs. His government security details were withdrawn—in a region plagued by bandit violence. In a state where rifles roam, an opposition figure was stripped of protection.

And remember this benchmark: a serving Deputy Speaker was abducted by bandits and paid ransom to secure his release. No terrorism charges followed the ransom. No grand theory of national security was constructed around the cash. He paid. He went free. The system moved on.

Now ask the questions Nigeria deserves answered—plainly.

If assault rifles at peace talks are acceptable, why is a one-barrel in a residence terrorism?

If non-kinetic engagement is wisdom, why does it apply to bandits but not to dissent?

If civilian proximity restrains force against criminals, why does it not restrain prosecutorial overreach against opposition figures?

Does a gun become peaceful when photographed at a negotiation table?

Does terrorism now depend on party cards, not capacity?

Is justice measured by calibre or by convenience?

Under the Tinubu-led APC, the pattern is unmistakable and documented. Rifles get dialogue. Shotguns get terrorism labels. Bandits are rehabilitated; critics are criminalised. Power negotiates with violence and prosecutes ambition.

Words matter. Terrorism is a grave charge meant for organised violence that terrorises populations—not for disciplining political opponents. When a state negotiates with armed criminals and weaponises terror laws against defectors, it empties the law of meaning and refills it with politics.

The record is clear. The dates are public. The headlines are archived. The photographs exist.

Terrorism for Malami’s one-barrel. Amnesty for Tinubu’s very peaceful bandits.

Mohammed Bello Doka can be reached via [email protected]