Nyesom Wike, the minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), issued a warning to the public yesterday against the practice of paying ransom to kidnappers and bandits, stating that doing so will only serve to further the evil.
A warning against paying a ransom was issued following allegations that Nigerians had contributed over N50 million through crowdfunding to pay the ransom for the rescue of five daughters of Mansoor Al-Kadriya, an Abuja resident.
On December 26, 2023, their father and six siblings were taken from their home in Bwari Council, Abuja.
The kidnappers killed one of their daughters, Nabeeha, last Friday for not being able to raise the ransom, leaving five of them in captivity, even though their father was later freed to go and earn the payment.
Wike made the appeal Monday at the Bwari Area Council during a town hall meeting about insecurity.
The heads of the territory’s security agencies, including Garba Haruna, the Commissioner of Police for the Federal Capital Territory, Alhaji Awwal Musa Ijakoro, the Sarkin-Bwari, and John Gabaya, the Chairman of the Bwari Area Council, attended the meeting.
Gabaya stated that in order to supplement the efforts of the security services in safeguarding the 90 villages and 16 districts that make up Bwari Council, the council planned to organize 50 hunters and 50 vigilantes into a combined security task force and provide them with logistical support.
Wike said: “We have to stop this idea of going to the radio to say we are ready to raise money. When you do that, those criminals are happy. They are happy when the people that are concerned, you people, want to raise money.
“No. I know it is painful that your wife, your children, and your husband have been kidnapped. All we want is to stop it, not to encourage it.
“Journalists should also help us. We need the support of everybody. The kind of news you write also will encourage them.”
He pledged to pursue bandits aggressively, causing inconvenience and misery for the people living in the Federal Capital Territory.
He stated, “It is no longer going to be business as usual. Everything has to be done to protect lives and property. Without protection of lives and property, then we have no business in government.
“My coming here today is to assure you that we are very serious. All those criminals, bandits, enough is enough! We will do everything in our power to make sure that we will not allow this to happen again.”The minister added that yesterday morning, he received the president’s authority to supply all of the supplies needed to support the security agencies.
He declared that since they would have access to all required logistics, the security services would no longer be able to claim they were underequipped.
The minister also denounced the actions of terrorists and abductors causing chaos throughout the nation, pointing out that the FCT had a high rate of abductions inside the area councils.
He said, “We are aware that Mr. President called us and all the service chiefs to discuss this issue. So, concerted efforts are being made by security agencies to stop it immediately.
“These kidnappings happen around the suburbs, around locations that are bordering Kaduna and Niger. And this is as a result of the current operations going on in the North-west and some parts of North-central.
“The bandits are fleeing, and they are getting shelters around these areas, and the security agencies are working very hard to push them out, block the movement and finish this thing once and for all.
“The president has given us the marching order and all the support that we need and what the security agencies need to end this thing.”
