Who will rescue Kaduna from banditry and kidnapping?

BY ISRAEL OJOKO

Weeping and wailing backed with prayers are the order of the day, most notably, since the start of the year 2021 in Kaduna state. Christians are calling on Jesus, while the Muslims run to Allah, while others just manage to say a word of prayer in the best way they can.

The ones that could still muster the strength to pray, did so with all vigour, calling on the supernatural to rescue their innocent children from the hands of faceless kidnappers who have now placed ransom, including food items — like a list an intending groom should provide for the traditional marriage rite of his bride — to secure their release.

It is not a funny experience for parents who had sent their children to school, only to hear of their kidnap. I can only imagine the shock of hearing the sad news. Oh, my child(ren), are they alive? What could be happening to them right now? Where have they been taken to? How are they being treated? Where will I raise the outrageous ransom for their release? Who will help me? These are some of the many places their minds will be almost at the same time.

Such touching stories they must have been hearing from a distant is now right in front of them, and they are now victims. A few hours later, calls start coming in from the abductors, demanding ridiculous amounts of ransom from people who could barely eat three square meals.

Unfortunately, Kaduna, arguably Nigeria’s most fortified state with a concentration of all military paraphernalia, is now the beehive of these unhindered atrocities of kidnapping and banditry.

Without much visible resistance from security agencies, multiple kidnappings of school children are now the order of the day and even the governor had since withdrawn his son from the state’s public school. The other day, I wrote about state governors rolling up their sleeves and stop being lazy with insecurity issues. It is easier for a governor to find out about impending attacks within his territory and swiftly mobilise engagement than running to Abuja for a solution.

The same energy Governor Nasir El Rufai put to pull out his son from public school is the same energy he could have used to prevent the kidnapping of hundreds of children whose parents do not have the resources and luxury to do what the governor did. El-Rufai can afford home lessons for his children, as a matter of fact, school and exam board can bring question papers to his house for his children to write their exams but not everyone can enjoy such privilege.

I watched a video of mothers and fathers weeping, rolling on the floor, praying, shouting, and begging for the release of their children. I also saw another video of the kidnapers wielding their weapons consisting of AK47, RPG, and many others, while demanding N500 million ransom.

I also read reports in newspapers that some kidnappers are demanding bags of rice, beans, cooking oil, and other ingredients, threatening that the school children will die of starvation if their demands are not met.

Millions of naira have changed hands between parents or family members of kidnapped victims and the kidnappers. But one would wonder how were these negotiations and exchanges made without any fight whatsoever from security agencies. If it is because of fear of the abductees getting killed, unfortunately, some of them get murdered anyway if the ransom is not paid or is delayed.

Kaduna state houses all top security outfits in the country; the Nigerian Defence Academy, Armed forces command, Nigerian air force base, Nigerian military school, and police command are all domiciled in the state. It is expected that these unfortunate things happening in Kaduna should not be heard of in the first place or at least, should have been contained by government authorities.

One of the schools recently attacked is just a 10 minutes drive from Kalampazi Barracks but there was no intervention until the students were taken away into the forest. Imagine gathering over a hundred school children in one place and moving them from that place to somewhere else. That operation should take more than one hour.

Many people are now beginning to align with the school of thought that kidnapping is a big business that involves some powerful individuals in the country. Little wonder the huge amount of money always demanded ransom.

While some groups of people are cashing out big earnings from the lucrative business of kidnapping, victims are going through hell at the hands of these unscrupulous elements making life unbearable for residents of the state.

The kidnapping business is booming in the north, but the government is quelling peaceful protest and agitations in the south. It makes it easy for many to rightly point to the direction where these ‘business moguls’ are domiciled.

As I was rounding off this article, the internet was agog with reports of further kidnappings. The provost of the College of Agriculture and Animal Science, Bakura, Zamafara state was kidnapped as early as 2am on Sunday, and just as I was digesting the story, I got a notification of another abduction, this time, it is the 85-year-old Emir of Kajuru including three women, two of his grandchildren, three of his aides and five others in Kaduna.

It is obvious the military and other security agencies are overwhelmed, if we are not hiding something, then it’s time to seek help from advanced nations like Germany, France, the USA, China, and Japan, among others. We have a lot of trade exchange and businesses with these countries, it is time we involve them fully in our security challenges, at least for a period of time. But it seems we are not ready for that conversation.

One thing I am sure of is that when we are really ready to put an end to these atrocities, we will do it, but unfortunately, many lives, including the future of many great prospects, would have been wasted with bullets and explosives.

I am also sure that the voracious desire to make wealth at the expense of people’s lives and safety will push perpetrators of banditry and kidnapping to their untimely and disgraceful end.

Ojoko can be reached via [email protected]