Kidnap-for-ransom: Rising reports within South-west demand concerted efforts

Discourse over insecurity in the Country has grown beyond the verge of a nascent subject. It has become a national issue which assumes a frontal ranking in the state-of-nation discourse. While several threats have had their rooting over a long time in the Country, it is now saddening that the poor response system of the Government to stem the claws of these threats finding expression by reasons of the growing forces of complexity of the Nigerian society and the dynamics of emergent challenges,    has brought the Country to a state of hot seated turbulence by degeneration of conditions.

One of the menace of insecurity — Kidnap-for-ransom — which began as a mere threat has grown to an estate of misadventure brewing storms in the Country. The menace has grown beyond the classification of a new threat in Nigeria. While the phenomenon has its rooting in the South-south at the onset of the amnesty struggle in the Niger-Delta, occasioning militants kidnapping expatriates of oil companies and other important personalities in exchange for ransom to secure their release, it has extended its wings to other geopolitical zones of the Country. Recently, the North-West has been brought under the scourge of banditry whose kidnap-for-ransom escapades have worsened security profile, such that even school children have been brought under the scourge of their soft targets. However, while the scourge is known to have taken resounding toll in the South-south, fairly in the South-east and recently engulfed the North-west as the North-east is known to be grappling with terrorism, the South-west until recently had not recorded so much turbulence of the escapade. While the zone is known to have had history of kidnapping for other reasons mainly ritual or robbery-related, the phenomenon of kidnap-for-ransom appears to be a menace sprouting to lay its foot on its soil. Recently, reports of kidnap-for-ransom cases appear to be rising gradually within the zone.

Most recently was the report of the abduction of the Coordinator of the National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN), in Odogbolu local government area of Ogun State, Olamilekan Okunuga, by unknown gunmen, who are demanding N30million in exchange for his release. The Youth leader was reportedly kidnapped on Thursday on his way from Ibadan, around Ogere in Ikenne local government area of the State. Reports have it that his car was abandoned by the roadside as the kidnappers whisked him away into the forest. Last month was the case of the shocking report of the abduction of Air Vice Marshal, Sikiru Smith (retd.), by masked gunmen in the Ajah area of Lagos State had hit the ground. Lagos which is not too known for such high profile dimension of the menace may have been caught unawares as  Smith who is a cousin to a former Inspector-General of Police and current Chairman of the Police Service Commission, Musiliu Smith, was reportedly supervising work on a site in the Ajah area of Lagos State on Monday 27, September, when the masked gunmen invaded the site shooting sporadically, after which he was whisked away in a waiting speedboat and sped away after his struggle with the gunmen failed.

A reported SOS voice shared by his driver, Corporal Odiji, following the abduction had stated: “This is an emergency. I am Corporal Odiji attached to Air Vice Marshal Smith. They just abducted him from the site where we were working. Some gunmen who were wearing masks just came and snatched my boss now. They shot everywhere. I was near where I was fixing my boss’ vehicle. As I was coming, I saw them leaving in a boat but I wasn’t armed so I just ran to the site and I saw his glasses and where he struggled with them. Please pass this information. It is an emergency.”

Kidnapping in Lagos neighbourhood, Ogun State, have recently been generating traffic. Suspected Fulani herdsmen who abducted a pregnant woman, and two other victims in Ogun forest recently, had subsequently demanded N10million each for the release of the victims.  The victims were reportedly kidnapped penultimate Sunday along the Igbo-Ora-Sokoto Road while going to visit their friend in the Abeokuta-North Local Government Area of Ogun State. It was reported that the kidnappers laid ambush for the victims around the area, known as Karigo. The kidnappers following the abduction reached out to the family members of the victims two days after (Tuesday 22) demanding N10m from each of them.

In Ekiti, two lovers abducted recently, less than a week to their wedding, had their plans disrupted as they only regained their freedom from the gunmen,  few hours to their engagement and wedding ceremony slated for Friday 24th and Saturday 25th, September. It was reported the two lovers were freed around Ayedun area of Ekiti State after payment of ransom. The duo reportedly became victims of the ugly development on returning from Ado Ekiti, the state capital, where they had gone to shop ahead of their wedding when they were abducted at a bad portion of the road along Ilasa Ekiti-Ayebode Ekiti Road in the Ekiti East Local Government area of the State.

It is essential for the leaders within the zone to galvanise concerted efforts towards preventing the degeneration of the menace into a turbulence. While the phenomenon is still much at the threat volume, it is only rational that leaders and authorities within the zone treat the subject with firm approach. It is known how laxity in some other parts of the Country to tackle the menace at its nascent stage treating it as a mere security threat, has translated to the menace growing to become a turbulence they are yet to recover from.

The place of the State Government is very key in curbing the claws of the rising troubles. In this case, it becomes imperative as Chief Security Executives of their respective states, that Governors within the zone rise to tackle the challenge at the forefront. Drawing strategic measures of zonal response system across the zone involving all the States within the jurisdiction remains important for check mechanisms which give bearing to territorial and border security intelligence, just as drafting localised systems to address the peculiarities of individual states remain sacrosanct.

The need for State Governors to take a leading role is sacrosanct. It is reminiscent how bandits in some States in the affected zones, have with effrontery targeted State Governors. It is imperative that the Chief Executives of the States do not wait until the situation become an albatross before swinging into action. With the prevailing experience across other zones, it is deducible that waiting on the Federal Government on the ground that it holds the exclusive preserve on security may be catastrophic. While the constitutional provisions of control over security architectures may pose certain limitations which form one of the basis for the calls for state police, it is notable that formidable measures are still within the reach of the State Governments by strategic formations to device response systems against degeneration of the menace. Within this framework, working with the local authorities and other decentralised institutions within the communal formations is paramount for intelligence purposes.