Kidnappers still on the prowl

• Kidnapping has always been there –IG

When enraged youths at the Niger Delta started kidnapping, to forcefully arrest the attention of the government to the devastation and poverty in their region, they never bargained it would today be a business that had criminals laughing all the way to the banks.

Today, kidnapping and kidnappers have gone through several phases and continue to hold swell. This year alone, several prominent Nigerians, including journalists have been kidnapped and ransoms paid for their freedom.
True, the spectre of the dreaded Boko Haram militant is still plaguing Nigerians, but every day, news filters out on how the Nigerian troops are decimating the militants and raiding their hideouts. These exploits by the Nigerian soldiers, are beginning to make Boko Haram seem less threatening.
Yes, they continue to attack and run, in a sort of guerrilla warfare, but the sect’s strangulating hold on Nigeria has lessened. The nightmare, presently dogging Nigerians is kidnapping. It seemed that no matter what the government did or security measures put in place, kidnappers continue to have the upper arm. As Nigeria marks its 55th Independence Anniversary, kidnapping tops the scale as one of the most recurring security challenges in the country.
The latest modus operandi of kidnappers today is combination of robbery with kidnapping. They now use a stone to kill two birds. These days, not only do they rob their victims’ home and cart away valuables, they also kidnap the victim and collect ransom. Within two months, three prominent Nigerians were kidnapped. The Nigerian security forces lack of statistics, make the number of victims kidnapped every month elusive. It is however clear that the numbers are increasing.
Only the prominent ones are heard, while the averagely rich families keep mum. The game however continues, with the kidnappers getting richer. Nigeria is grown and expected to increase positively, but kidnapping has become a worrisome concern, raising security debate.
The recent abduction of the former secretary to the federal government, Chief Olu Falae on September 21, 2015, in his farm, sent shock waves down the spines of Nigerians. Falae was kidnapped in his farm on his 77th birthday, with the kidnappers demanding N100 million ($500,000) ransom for his release. Falae was released on September 24, 2015. The family initially said ramson was paid before Falae was released, they however later changed the tune of their song, insisting that no ransom was paid.
The denial was apparently a move by security agencies to stem the tide of criminals rushing to embrace kidnapping. On September 27, 2015, amid the rising cases of kidnapping in Nigeria, the Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Solomon Arase, assured that the police would do its best to stem the ugly tide. This was even as he stressed that kidnapping was not on the increase in Nigeria.
His words: “Let me debunk the impression that there has been a tremendous increase in kidnappings in Nigeria. Kidnapping has always been there and we are doing our best to stem the tide. Comparative figures outside Nigeria show that ours is still within manageable levels.
Whenever it happens, we are able to arrest the kidnappers and deal with them. Criminals can’t overwhelm Nigerians. Definitely, it will not happen under my watch and leadership. We should not get apprehensive about this. I can assure Nigerians that we are on top of the situation and will make sure that we have a secure environment.”
Another victim, Chief James Uduji, Chairman of Cometstar Manufacturing Ltd, was abducted at gun point near his house at 72 Junction, 7th avenue Festac Town while returning from work on September 7, 2015.
The kidnappers were also alleged to have demanded for N100m ransom. On September 14, 2015, Mrs. Toyin Nwosu, wife of Steve Nwosu, Deputy Managing Director/Editor- in-Chief of The Sun Publishing Limited, was kidnapped. She was abducted in her home, in the presence of her family, at about 2.30 a.m. She was released in the wee hours of September 17.
The Managing Director of The Sun Newspaper, Ghana, Mr. Sola Oshunkeye said: “Kidnappings for ransom, if I’m not mistaken, gathered momentum during the upsurge of militancy in the Niger Delta.
Then, oil workers of foreign nationalities were the prime targets. But with the drastic reduction in the restiveness in the region, through the amnesty programme implemented of the late President Umar Musa Yar’Adua, and the increased security activities in the south-east, criminal gangs have pushed westward, hitting Lagos hard. Now, the evil phenomenon has spread across the country. And this is not to mention abductions by Boko Haram insurgents, who, according to Amnesty International, have kidnapped 2,000 women and girls since the beginning of 2014.
“In this evil enterprise of kidnapping for ransom, gangs target politically exposed persons, foreign nationals, wealthy people and their family members, celebrities and their relatives, high-flying professionals, as well as prominent religious leaders and their families. These are some of the problems that tar Nigeria’s image overseas and encourage some perisons or organisations to project an image of a country that is highly insecure and burning on all fronts for Nigeria.” Oshunkeye said that to confront this terrible challenge, even the phenomenon of kidnappings for ransom, government may need to formulate and implement more tough-on-crime policies.
He said: “While the authorities must ensure diligent prosecution of arrested kidnappers, they must ensure continuous training and retraining of police officers not only on bursting kidnap gangs after the act, but also nipping their evil schemes in the bud. Intelligence sharing should not be the exclusive preserve of the intelligence agencies. Neighbours could also share intelligence about strange movements, weird characters and anything unusual in their community, with one another, just like in the days of our fore-fathers.” A security expert, Mr. Ethelbert Oney said that kidnapping was increasing daily because preventive measures had not been put in place in Nigeria.
Oney opined: “Kidnapping is related to terrorism. It’s usually done because of money. Kidnapping is not done for fun and it will keep increasing in Nigeria until preventive measures are put in place to curb the activity.”
According to Oney, “The problem we have in Nigeria is that all students are looking for white collar jobs. There are no jobs anywhere that can accommodate all graduates. The school system should introduce a skill acquisition programme for students so that when they graduate, they can do something meaningful with their lives. The government can also help by giving incentives to the graduates to start their businesses. This will keep them busy and take their minds off kidnapping.”
A retired Commissioner of Police, Mr. Abubakar Tsav opined that the way kidnapping could be curbed, was by employing more police officers and creating awareness for the people in the society to know how these kidnappers operate.
His words: “The number of police officers should be increased and an enlightenment programme should be introduced to create awareness on how kidnappers operate to the people, using past victims experiences. Nigerians should be security conscious by not revealing their activities to everyone because even domestic servants, friends and relatives can arrange kidnap.
Movements should be kept as secret. People should not pass one route all the time; routes should be alternated to avoid trace.” Mr. Frank Oshanugor, a security analyst and author of ‘Terrorism in Nigeria,’ said that the rate of kidnapping was increasing because of unemployment and greed. He stressed that security agencies, especially the police, needed to be properly equipped in order to meet this new pattern of crime. “Joblessness has led some people into kidnapping and some that have the money, still involve in the act because they are not contented with what they have,” said Oshanugor.
“The act can be reduced if the police are well equipped to fight these kidnappers. If kidnappers are caught and penalised, others will desist from it!” Oshanugor advised that people should love God, be contented with what they have and not live flamboyantly. He further urged security agencies to device better means of tracking kidnappers. Mr. Dipo Kehinde, publisher of one of the fastest selling crime magazines in Nigeria, Chief Detective said, the population, economy and lack of jobs, contribute to kidnapping. He added: “The population is growing. Many people are leaving schools, there are no jobs.
Some people have been unemployed for over 10 years. The economy is in a very bad shape. Some of these things add up in forming the minds of youths to indulge in wrong activities.” Kehinde blamed the government for the kidnapping in Nigeria. He said government should punish kidnappers, not celebrate them. He argued that amnesty given to some kidnappers in Nigeria, encouraged others to go into the crime, especially as those in the crime were getting rich.
“There is an old saying; “crime doesn’t pay” but not in Nigeria. Kidnappers are becoming millionaires and billionaires. This was the case of the militants the government rewarded. Crime was not punished and it sent a very wrong signal to the youths,” said Kehinde. Kehinde commended the police, saying they were now working assiduously to ensure kidnapping was reduced.
He added: “In comparing today’s kidnapping, with the past, I would say that kidnapping has reduced. One of the things that helped is the online portal the police created, through which Nigerians can report incidents and give information directly to the police.”
He noted that community diplomacy was crucial in tackling kidnapping because the issue of security was not in the hands of the security agencies alone, but all. His words: “We need collective security, which is where community policing comes in!
These kidnappers live among us and people should learn to ask questions.
With the online portal, people should not be afraid of revealing the identity of anyone they suspect of being a kidnapper. You don’t need to reveal your identity when passing information through the portal. The information would be sent directly to the police headquarters.” Kehinde urged Nigerians to be mindful of the information they give out on social media sites, stressing that it was the best means of giving out exclusive information about themselves to the whole world.
He said: “Today, we celebrate our achievements on Facebook and other social media sites. Once someone buys a car, he or she would post it on Facebook. Some people even post that they have won a billion naira contract. The kidnappers are watching and these people become targets.”
Indeed, kidnapping became prevalent in South East after the Niger Delta militants were given amnesty. But today, kidnappers have left South East regions, making inroads into the South West. The reason is not far fetch. Governments in the South East regions have passed death penalty law against kidnappers and other laws that made the crime quite unappealing.
In Imo State, it’s whispered that kidnappers are outrightly killed, never given second chance, even before they could be charged to court. In Anambra State, buildings, believed to be proceeds of kidnappings are demolished immediately.
The South West has been very slow in enforcing any stiff laws against kidnappers, thus kidnappers will continue to forage into the region. Except something drastic is done by security agencies in Nigeria, Nigerians will witness the next Independence Anniversary, still fretting about kidnappers and kidnapping.