A former governor of Kaduna State, Malam Nasir El-Rufai, has come under the bashing of the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) for alleging that the federal government operates a policy of ransom payments and offers incentives to bandits.
Also, the chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) in the 19 Northern States and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Rev. John Joseph Hayab, has picked holes on El-Rufai’s comments on the population of Southern Kaduna.
The clergyman described the former governor’s claims as divisive and indicative of deep-seated hatred for the region.
El-Rufai spoke on Sunday on Channel’s Television programme, where he spoke on national and local issues that have attracted criticisms from various stakeholders.
In a statement issued yesterday by Zakari Mijinyawa for the ONSA, he said the former governor’s assertions were baseless.
Mijinyawa said, “At no time has the ONSA, or any arm of government under this administration, engaged in ransom payments or inducements to criminals.
“We have consistently warned Nigerians against paying ransom,” he added.
He explained how the government had been dealing with bandits and other criminal elements thus: “From inception, this government adopted a dual strategy: decisive kinetic operations alongside community engagements to address local grievances. The result is evident in areas such as Igabi, Birnin Gwari, Giwa, and other parts of Kaduna, which once suffered untold terror in the state of Kaduna but are now experiencing relative peace.
“The efforts of our gallant military and security agencies in capturing or eliminating notorious bandits have been widely reported in the media. In Kaduna alone, known kingpins who once terrorised residents such as Boderi, Baleri, Sani Yellow Janburos, Buhari and Boka, among others, were eliminated. Only recently, leaders of Ansaru who previously established bases in Kaduna were apprehended,” he said.
Mijinyawa said the successes came at a cost, as some of the brave officers paid the supreme price.
“For a former governor of a state in person of El-Rufai to deny these sacrifices on national television is both unfair and deeply insulting to the memories of our security personnel.
“We urge El-Rufai and all political actors to desist from dragging national security institutions into partisan battles,” he said.
In his reaction, Rev. Hayab, who served as CAN chairman in Kaduna State during El-Rufai’s administration, described the former governor’s comments as “dangerous and unstatesmanlike.”
He accused El-Rufai of consistently promoting policies that fuel division and undermine peaceful coexistence.
“His utterances confirm a longstanding pattern of disdain for the people of Southern Kaduna,” Hayab said, stressing that such rhetoric was responsible for much of the unrest and mistrust experienced in the state during El-Rufai’s administration.
Citing a past national census, the CAN leader recalled how the significant population figures from Southern Kaduna reportedly led the Kaduna State Shariah Committee to consider legal action against the National Population Commission (NPC), a development he said underscored the demographic importance of the region.
“Despite being predominantly Christian, and despite many being pastors who marry only one wife, there are families with up to 15 or 23 children in the area,” Hayab said, countering El-Rufai’s claims.
