Heads of security agencies, particularly the Nigeria Police Force, have been directed to investigate the factors that have recently emboldened kidnappers in the Federal Capital Territory and address them urgently.
The FCT, besides being the seat of the Federal Government, also serves as the headquarters of security agencies, including military and para-military organizations.
Abuja is generally considered off-limits to kidnappers and other criminal gangs due to the heavy presence of security personnel in the city center and adjoining communities. However, this hasn’t been the case lately, as a wave of kidnappings, robberies, and attacks by ‘one-chance’ operators has left authorities and residents on edge.
Speaking with the Nigerian Tribune on Monday, Senator Steve Karimi expressed lawmakers’ concerns about the situation and called on the Minister of the FCT, Mr. Nyesom Wike, and the FCT Police Command to take proactive measures to protect the lives and property of residents.
Karimi emphasised the boldness with which kidnappers and other criminal gangs are currently operating in the territory and urged the minister and the police to step in by first investigating the factors that have emboldened the criminals.
The legislator stated, “I think something has emboldened the kidnappers lately that security agencies should sit down and investigate. This is not ordinary.
“You will also recall that the Abuja-Kaduna Expressway, in the recent past, has been well-fortified with improved security, only for us to hear reports last week about attempts to kidnap travelers there again.”
The Nigerian Tribune recalls how suspected kidnappers attacked Sagwari Estate in Dutse area of Abuja on January 7, abducting about 10 residents and demanding a ransom of over N60m per victim. The victims have yet to be rescued.
Only on Sunday, there was widespread anger in the FCT after abductors killed one out of six sisters they had kidnapped earlier on Tuesday last week due to a delay in remitting the ransom they demanded.
The deceased, Nabeeha Al-Kadriyar, who was killed on Friday, had been kidnapped together with her five sisters and their father, Alhaji Mansoor Al-Kadriyar, from their residence in Bwari area of the FCT.
The abductors had initially collected N60m to release the father and instructed him to produce N60m for each of the girls, a figure they later raised to N100m.
But by Friday, due to the delay in delivering the ransom, the kidnappers killed one of the girls.
Commenting further, Karimi observed that the situation in the FCT was not different from other parts of the country, which must also receive immediate attention from governments at all levels.
He spoke more, “What is happening in the FCT is happening elsewhere in the country, and the FCT is not insulated. Just last week, I had to speak about the situation in Kogi-West Senatorial District of Kogi State too, where kidnapping is rampant.
“Yes, Abuja is the capital and the seat of power; major security networks have their operational headquarters here. But, there are communities at the outskirts of the city, where kidnapping is on the increase lately; a very disturbing phenomenon.
“We know that the minister of the FCT is up to the task. We encourage him to replicate what he did in Rivers State while he was the governor in the FCT by reducing the problems of kidnapping and other criminal activities.
“While he was a governor, Wike was able to contain criminal activities in the creeks and in the city of Port Harcourt. Let him replicate it here.”
He added that security agencies must wake up and retool their operational strategies across the country by tackling kidnapping as a “nationwide security threat.”
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