The lingering multi-faceted crises besetting Nigeria which are believed to be offshoots of the protracted terrorism perpetrated by the Boko Haram and allied groups that hit the northeast in 2009 have, undeniably, spread to other parts of the country.
It is immensely worrisome that the virus of terrorism has mutated into banditry, which includes kidnapping for ransom. What is so disturbing is the seeming helplessness on the part of government and the security agencies to address this ugly development. The presumption is that the authorities are overwhelmed by the audacity of the criminal elements who gain gumption on a daily basis.
Many have lost their lives because their families were not able to raise the premium placed on the victims or delayed in paying the illicit money to these heartless criminals that now operate freely in all parts of the country. The argument that the persistence of banditry in Nigeria is caused by under-governed spaces, weak security apparatus, proliferation of small arms and light weapons, socioeconomic conditions such as poverty and unemployment may be cogent. Still, it is more intriguing that some residents of certain communities in parts of the country now aid and abet this crime for pecuniary reasons. Elements within these communities serve as middlemen between the kidnapped victims and their abductors in processing payment.
Available evidence indicate that bandits now pay residents of these communities huge sums of money to provide them with information about their victims, which makes kidnapping the most virulent form of banditry and the most prevalent and obstinate violent crime in the country.
In our opinion, this is a frustrating dimension to a problem that already has a vice-like grip on the nation. We should be worried because any criminal enterprise where communities and their leaders get involved becomes extremely difficult to resolve as the gains from the illicit business work like addiction.
There are allegations regarding the involvement of security officials. If true, then it makes the situation not only dangerous but unpatriotic as they have the capacity and capability to provide the logistics and weapons the criminals desperately need. The case of the notorious bandit and kidnapper Hamisu Bala, better known as ‘Wadume’ in Taraba state comes to mind.
Wadume was arrested by the police in August 2019 and was being transported to the headquarters in Abuja when the police officers were attacked by soldiers led by a captain in the Nigerian army. Three police officers were killed in that incident while Wadume was set free by the soldiers.
We remember the three gallant officers namely Inspector Mark Ediale, Sergeant Usman Danzumi and Sergeant Dahiru Musa. These deceased officers were said to be part of the crack police team that arrested another kidnap kingpin, Chukwudumeme Onwuamadike popularly known as Evans, who has been prosecuted and is serving life-imprisonment.
Although Wadume has been rearrested by the police in Kano state, nothing has been heard about the army captain that allegedly led the assault that killed the police officers and freed the criminal in the first place.
Security experts are worried that Nigeria is perceived to have one of the world’s highest rates of kidnap-for-ransom cases. Other countries high up on the list include Venezuela, Mexico, Yemen, Syria, the Philippines, Iraq, Afghanistan and Somalia.
Kidnapping has persisted in spite of measures put in place by the government. The Nigeria police had introduced an anti-kidnapping squad in the 2000s, aimed at ending kidnapping but this has not made meaningful impacts because of poor manpower and the disinclination of the force itself to apply the rules in the execution of its duties especially when its officers and men are implicated in the crimes they were supposed to fight.
As a newspaper, we are convinced that these efforts have failed because of weak sanctioning and deterrence mechanisms. Kidnappers are emboldened to carry out their nefarious activities in an environment that condones crime; where criminal opportunism and impunity prevail without adequate punishment.
Therefore, there is need for an urgent review of Nigeria’s current anti-kidnapping approach to make it more effective. Kidnapping and other forms of criminality have led to the loss of tens of thousands of lives even as huge amounts of money have been lost to ransom takers.
This situation is worsened by the increasing poverty and hunger in the country occasioned by the very harsh economic circumstances that are pushing the average citizen to the brink.
There is, therefore, an urgent need to address the root causes of the banditry and terrorist activities in Nigeria: these include the high rate of unemployment and poverty, lack of education, poor socio-amenities. Nigeria is clamouring for Foreign Direct Investment but that is not possible in an environment of criminality.
