The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Abduction

  • Yet another abduction of worshippers

    Yet another abduction of worshippers

    Sir: The abduction of 177 worshippers on Sunday from ECWA Church and Cherubim and Seraphim Churches 1 and 2 in Kurmin Wali community, Kajuru Local Government Area of Kaduna State, has once again forced the nation to confront a disturbing and persistent question: what exactly is the motive behind these repeated attacks on innocent citizens at places meant for peace, refuge and worship?

    Initially, the incident was flatly denied by security agencies, a response that has sadly become familiar in similar cases. However, the truth eventually emerged, confirming the fears of families and communities who already knew that something had gone terribly wrong. Such denials only deepen public distrust and reinforce the perception that authorities are either overwhelmed or unwilling to confront reality head-on.

    This incident is one abduction too many. The government must find a concrete and effective way to put an end to these senseless crimes that have turned daily life into a gamble with death or captivity. Statements of condemnation are no longer sufficient; what is required is decisive action, accountability and results that citizens can see and feel.

    Read Also: Court sacks Abure, orders INEC to recognise Nenadi-led leadership of Labour Party

    One must ask, honestly and painfully, when did Nigeria reach this point? When did the security of lives and property become so uncertain that attending church or travelling on the road now carries the risk of kidnapping? A nation that cannot protect its citizens in their most vulnerable moments is one standing on dangerously weak foundations.

    The country recently rejoiced when victims of the Kwara church abduction were released. Yet that relief was short-lived, as no arrests were made and no clear consequences followed. This failure to bring perpetrators to justice may well have emboldened criminals, sending the message that mass abduction carries little risk beyond negotiation.

    These criminal networks have also been strengthened by the steady flow of ransom payments. While families often have no choice but to pay to save their loved ones, the broader effect is devastating. Ransom has become a business model, funding further operations and encouraging more daring and violent attacks.

    Nigeria can no longer pretend that this crisis can be solved in isolation. It is increasingly clear that foreign assistance is needed, alongside strong and sincere collaboration with neighbouring countries to secure porous borders that allow criminals and weapons to move freely. At the same time, the practice of granting amnesty to terrorists and violent criminals by some states must be firmly discouraged, as it only legitimises crime and worsens the situation.

    This crisis is getting out of hand, and pretending otherwise is dangerous. The nation must summon the political will to confront abductions with a comprehensive, coordinated and uncompromising strategy. Anything less risks condemning citizens to a future where fear replaces faith and survival becomes the ultimate act of resistance.

    •Tochukwu Jimo Obi,

    Obosi Anambra State.

  • Security guard detained in Lagos over alleged abduction of employer’s child

    Security guard detained in Lagos over alleged abduction of employer’s child

    Operatives of the Lagos Police Command have arrested a guard, Amos Kini, for allegedly abducting a two-year-old child in Elemoro, Lagos.

    Kini, according to a report filed by the toddler’s mother, allegedly absconded with him on September 21.

    The woman, who reported the incident around 11:50pm on the same day at Elomoro Division, said the guard also fled with their mobile phone.

    He allegedly contacted the child’s father through the stolen phone and demanded N5 million for his release.

    The Lagos Command’s Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Superintendent of Police (SP) Abimbola Adebisi, said operatives started investigation as soon as they received the complaint, leading to the suspect’s arrest two days later.

    Read Also: Police arrest guard over alleged child abduction in Lagos

    The police said they arrested Aruna Dauda, the guarantor for the suspect.

    They said while the suspect had released the child, the operatives continued their manhunt for him.

    “On 23rd September 23, about 1400hrs, operatives of the Tactical Squad (Hyena), acting on credible intelligence, successfully tracked and arrested Amos Kini at his hideout within the Elemoro area. The suspect has since confessed to the crime and remains in police custody. He will be charged to court upon the conclusion of investigations.

    “The Commissioner of Police, Olohundare Jimoh, condemned the abduction, reaffirming the command’s commitment to combating violent and capital crimes in the state.

    “He urged parents and guardians to remain vigilant and advised members of the public to report any suspicious activities to the police through any of our emergency numbers,’’ Adebisi added.  

  • Curbing abduction in schools, by stakeholders

    Curbing abduction in schools, by stakeholders

    Stakeholders have urged the Federal Government to tackle insecurity in schools and make learning spaces safe for pupils while deploying strong and effective mechanisms. They argue that incorporating security education in school curriculum may be welcomed though it is not the solution to incessant abduction of pupils, DAMOLA KOLA-DARE reports.

    Recurrent attacks on educational institutions, teachers, and pupils are worrisome. The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) noted that since 2018, over 30 schools have been attacked in the country resulting in at least 2,295 teacher deaths and over 1,000 child abductions.

    The abduction of pupils is alarming. Bandits see schools and pupils as soft targets and as such demand heavy ransoms to the tune of hundreds of millions to release kidnapped children.

    On March 7, 287 pupils of pupils and teachers of the Government Secondary School and LEA Primary School, Kuriga 1, in the Chikun Local Government Area of Kaduna State were abducted. According to a teacher in the school, 100 pupils were abducted from the primary school while 187 students were abducted from the secondary school. Both schools are on  the same premises.

    Prior to that, some pupils and staff members of Apostolic Faith School in Ekiti State were abducted on January 29, 2024, from their school bus. Though  they were freed later,  the driver was found dead.

    From Chibok to Dapchi, Kankara, Kagara to Ekiti, Chikun, among others, insurgents remain unrepentant and continue to kidnap  thousands of school children.

    But the Federal Government is losing sleep over the matter. The  House of Representatives last week  urged the Federal Ministry of Education on the inclusion of security education  as a core subject in  Primary and Secondary School Curriculum. It called on the Committee on Basic Education and Services to ensure implementation.

    These followed the adoption of a motion entitled: “Need to Incorporate Security Education as Core Subject in Nigeria’s Primary and Secondary School Curriculum,” moved by Hon. Omirin Emmanuel Olusanyo.

    According to the House, the subject would prepare students for challenges in security. It stated that security education was vital for individuals to understand potential threats and deploy the right  measures to protect themselves and their assets.

    It would equip students with the necessary skills  and knowledge to direct the various contemporary security challenges, including economic, political, social, and environmental threats.

    For the house, due to worsening insecurity in the country, children should learn defence mechanisms, master first aid principles and emergency handling skills; hence, investing in security education is essential to protect students.  Knowledge, skills and awareness in security education would empower them to take preventive action.

    As laudable as the move might be, observers and stakeholders believe the menace of insecurity and attack on schools have gone beyond the inclusion of security education in the curriculum.

    One of such is immediate-past Vice Chancellor of Ahman Pategi University(APU), Kwara State, Prof. Mahfouz Adedimeji,who noted that security education is enough to address kidnapping and insecurity. He said  civic education and peace education already cover aspects of security education.

    The erstwhile  Director of the Centre for Peace and Strategic Studies, University of Ilorin (UNILORIN), described as ‘patently myopic’ the recourse to the curriculum as solution to every social problem.

    Adedimeji said there was an obsession with considering the school system or the curriculum the solution, the almighty formula, to every emergent problem.

    Read Also: Kaduna abduction: IG deploys armed mobile policemen in Kuriga

    He said: “For instance, there is a drug problem and it has been suggested that it should be addressed in the curriculum. Nigeria is also facing the problem of corruption. The solution is to put Corruption Studies in the curriculum. We have problems with immorality, so Sex Education should be in the curriculum. Everything is about the school system! How many subjects will pupils offer?

    “What is needed is for us to focus on human development, which is the process of enlarging people’s options and opportunities, enhancing their capabilities and improving their wellbeing.

    “Human development will engender human security with its three components of freedom from fear, freedom from want, and freedom to live in dignity. It is human security that complements state security and at the same time strengthens human development.

    “In simple terms, when hunger is banished, poverty is curtailed and unemployment is tackled by our leaders, the motivation for crime will be substantially reduced. They say idle hands are a devil’s workshop.

    “I believe that insecurity is largely due to poor governance. When we put good governance in place, there will be no incentive for crime. In fact, through good governance, which prioritises human development and human security, people will be protected against a broad range of threats to themselves and their communities. They will also be empowered to act on their own behalf and solve their own problems.”

    For Coordinator Child Protection Network Lagos State chapter, Mrs. Ronke Oyelakin, teaching security is not the major issue right now, though it is a step in the right direction. She said it was imperative to declare a state of emergency on the issue as long as the security situation of the nation does not improve.

    “We call on our dear President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to kindly declare a state of emergency on security in view of the rising cases of killing of innocent Nigerians and kidnappings for ransom, including school children and teachers.

    “Many communities have been seriously affected and I can tell children will be withdrawn from school because of fear of what if they come to my community and my school. The state should beef up security and then every other thing can follow.

    “Government at all levels should do the needful since security is everybody’s business. Nothing can be achieved without security assurance in the country. So, it is imperative to move all stumbling blocks that are bedeviling our security architecture.

    “It is our hope that the Federal State, Local Government and all stakeholders in education should join hands to protect our schools and the education workers in Nigeria.”

    President, Association for Formidable Educational Development (AFED), Mr. Emmanuel Orji, noted that the inclusion of security education in the curriculum  may not give quick results  on addressing insecurity.

    He said though security education was important, it is not the only thing needed to address kidnapping and insecurity in schools.

    Orji highlights measures to be deployed as quick fix to the problem.

    “There should be improved physical security, such as better perimeter security, CCTV cameras, and metal detectors. Also improved training for school staff on security procedures, threat identification, and emergency response is vital.Collaboration with local law enforcement agencies to create a coordinated security plan, more funding for school security programmes and infrastructure are also important.

    Also, there should be better community engagement, including working with parents and community groups to improve awareness and reporting of suspicious activity. Then as a matter of fact and urgency, bearing of arms and ammunition should be seen as a quick fix. Let everyone buy and move about with guns,” he said.

    The AFED President stressed the need to also  address the causes of insecurity, such as poverty, unemployment, and social exclusion.

    He said failure to address these issues would render security education inconsequential towards curbing kidnapping in schools.

    His words: “Leadership change of attitude is important.The love for wealth should be tackled as you can see the ripple effect. Others want to use any means possible to be like our leaders.

    “Furthermore, we must rethink Nigeria as a nation. Let’s discuss it.  In order to avoid total collapse of this country, we must stop trying to solve our problems using the same ways and means that have not worked over the years. We cannot do same  thing over and expect a different result.”

    Deputy National President National Parent Teacher Association of Nigeria (NAPTAN), Chief Adeolu Ogunbanjo, said: “Basically the security situation right now is so terrible that whatever measure they(Government)  take is right. The move is welcome. It will make many of us and our children aware of security situation in our schools. It is a win win situation. Security education in our schools is wonderful. Having been announced, unfortunately kidnapping of school children continues.

    “The security agencies should be up and doing because we still have to rely on them. One of the deliberate actions being taken by government is the move to include security education in our school curriculum. Many  kids have been kidnapped. It is sad. Government should start thinking of engaging armed  security personnel in schools. Our schools must prioritise safety and security. Schools have become soft targets because they are helpless. The Amotekuns, armed security personnel and other agencies should be engaged both in public and private schools.”

  • Return of mass abductions to the North

    Return of mass abductions to the North

    • By Ibrahim Mustapha

    Sir: Insecurity continues to be one of the deadly menaces plaguing Nigeria.

    In recent times, there has been an increase in kidnapping and banditry, posing a grievous threat to national security and economic development. Not only has this adversely affected our national image, but has also eaten deep into every fabric and segment of the nation. Badly affected is Northern Nigeria which has become the epicentre of banditry and kidnapping-for-ransom.

    Not too far from this is the spate of abduction of school children. Mass kidnappings of school girls and boys at schools in the Northeast and Northwest began seven years ago and have become a frequent phenomenon, carried out by rapacious bandits who have turned this menace into money-making ventures. This form of brazen terrorism has unfortunately not been met with the level of aggression that is needed to address their severity and recurrence.

    Since 2014, there have been over a thousand student kidnappings. These crimes have been targeted at underage school children who are often rendered vulnerable by poor security, infrastructure and negligence on the part of the state and federal government.

    In recent times, the public has begun to recall the genesis of the spate of school kidnappings in the town of Chibok, Borno State. There, 276 girls were kidnapped in April 2014 and 112 of them are still missing. In Kaduna, 39 students went missing after gunmen stormed the Federal College of Forestry Mechanization in Kaduna State overnight on March 11, 2021. At the time, it was the fourth school abduction in northern Nigeria. Not long after, there were reports of security operatives reportedly foiling an attempt to capture students from a secondary school in the early hours of Sunday, March 15, 2021 on the outskirts of Kaduna’s Ikara town.

    Read Also: No Nigerian should be in captivity, Speaker Abbas tells security agencies

    Ever since, one can count many series of abduction both reported and unreported in the north. Last week, in another sad and tragedy event, the bandits in commando-style, invaded Kuriga Primary School, in Chikun Local government and abducted 200 students and their principal. The abduction came barely one week after similar attack was carried out in Borno State by Boko Haram with 400 innocent women kidnapped. In Katsina and Zamfara states, mass abduction by bandits has become a recurring decimal. Those states have been experiencing attacks by bandits, leading to the closure of schools to avert further attacks. In all of these, the motive is to discourage the acquisition of western education in the north.

    While government is doing its best to tackle the challenges of schools abduction, there is the need to re-strategize security infrastructure and address the dearth of effective protection of lives and property.

    The authorities cannot continue to play to the tune of these culprits and reward them with ransoms. States and the federal governments must step up measures to tackle this notorious development already nearing boiling point. The government must wake up to its responsibilities of protecting citizens lives and properties and combat this menace because the target on education is a target on the future of Nigeria.

    •Ibrahim Mustapha,

     Pambegua, Kaduna State.

  • NUT condemns killings, abduction of school officials, students in Zamfara

    The Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT) has condemned the incessant killings and abduction of school officials by armed bandits in Zamfara State and other parts of the country.

    According to a NAN report, Dr. Mike Ike-Ene, the Secretary-General of the NUT, made the condemnation in an interview with newsmen in Abuja at the weekend, describing it as ‘alarming and worrisome’.

    According to Ike-Ene, the union is deeply concerned over the rising insecurity in some parts of the North, urging the federal government to fashion out an agenda to help check the trend for peaceful coexistence.

    He said that community policing, using vigilance group, was not enough to check insecurity in the country, but rather collective effort and adequate security apparatus.

    Ike-Ene disclosed that over 600 teachers have lost their lives in the North East through insurgency and social unrest in the area, adding that it has discouraged teachers from working or being transferred to the affected states.

    The Secretary-General therefore appealed to the federal government to do all it could to secure the release of the abductees and ensure total security of both students and teachers across the country.

    “The insecurity in the country has become so rampant that people could no longer sleep with their two eyes closed,” he said.

    It would be recalled that two caterers and three children were abducted on Wednesday by unknown bandits who attacked Government Girls Secondary School, Moriki, Zurmi Local Government Area of Zamfara.

  • Police confirm abduction of four Catholic priests in Delta

    Four Catholic priests, including one from the Warri Archdiocese, were on Tuesday night kidnapped by unknown gunmen around the Urhonigbe axis in Edo State.

    The Nation gathered that the victims, including one identified as Rev. Father Emmanuel Obadjere of the Saint Williams Catholic Church, Ororokpe, Delta State, under the Warri Archdiocese, were on their way to Ekpoma in Edo State when they were waylaid and abducted by suspected armed hoodlums.

    The abduction was confirmed by the Delta State Police Command, saying it will do every thing to secure the clerics’ freedom.

    It also confirmed that the abductors had reached out to the families of the victims and demanded ransom.

    But the police have cautioned against paying for their release. The amount being requested was not stated.

    A source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, told The Nation that the priests were travelling in a convoy from Ororokpe, the headquarters of Okpe Local Government Area of Delta State on Tuesday night before they were abducted in Urhonigbe.

    Delta Police spokesman Andrew Aniamaka, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), confirmed the abduction. He said the command had raised a search team for the victims, adding that everything would be done to ensure that the arrest and prosecution of the abductors.

    According to a source, the clerics were in a convoy of four vehicles and that the kidnappers allegedly forced two of the vehicles to a halt, ordering the occupants to alight.

    The source said: “Father Obadjere was travelling with his clergy friends to Ekpoma for their school’s old students meeting. The incident happened at Abraka as they were coming down from the bridge. It was on Tuesday.

    “They were in four vehicles. The kidnappers could not track the first two cars in front. They abandoned the vehicles the Priests were driving in.

    “So, it was the priests in the other two vehicles that alerted other priests in Warri Diocese of the development. Two of the priests are from Benin Arch-Diocese, one from Abuja and the other from Warri Diocese.”

    Confirming the development, the Delta State Police Commissioner, Muhammed Mustafa, said the police was doing everything possible to secure the release of the abducted persons.

    He said that a suspect has been arrested within the area of the incident, adding that investigation is ongoing.

    The police chief said: “It is true that four persons were kidnapped along the Benin/Ekpoma Road. We are working hard to rescue them.

    “The police have arrested one person who was around the scene of the crime. They have established contact with the church and the immediate family of those kidnapped.

    “The police are working hard to rescue the victims, adding that a suspect had been arrested in connection with the crime within the area where the incident happened.

    “The kidnappers have started calling, but you know, we do not encourage paying ransom. We will definitely ensure that they are released.”

  • Two soldiers get 10 years for extortion, abduction 

    Two soldiers deployed in Operation Lafiya Dole Sgt. Aliyu Hassan and Corporal Nasiru Bello – have been sentenced to 10 years imprisonment for violations of human rights. They were tried by a military court martial.

    President of the General Court Martial (GCM), 7 Division Brig.-Gen. Olusegun Adesina, while delivering judgement yesterday, said the action of the soldiers was unlawful and against the ethics of the Armed Forces.

    The soldiers were charged for abduction and forceful collection of money from innocent victims, amounting to N1 million.

    Gen. Adesina said the accused were standing trial for a three count charge including abduction of Alhaji Hassan on November 19, 2017, from his home in Ruwan Shanfi, Maiduguri, Borno State, receipt of N1 million after he was threatened as Boko Haram sponsor.”

    The soldiers confessed to committing the offence, saying they invaded the victim’s house with a Honda 98 mode, dragged him out and took him to Railway Area, where he was threatened and tagged as a Boko Haram sponsor, and N3 million was demanded from him.

    But the victim begged and agreed to pay N1 million, and took the accused his shop at Banban line to give them the money.

    Gen. Adesina, in his judgment, said: ”Having considered all pleadings by the defence counsel on the first count charge, you Sergeant Aliyu Hassan and Corporal Nasiru Bello are hereby sentenced to five years in prison for abduction.

    “On the second count charge, your rank from Sergeant and Corporal has reduced to Corporal and private for illegal behaviour on uniform. On the third count charge of extortion of N1 million from victims, you are hereby sentenced to five years imprisonment respectively and service of term shall run concurrently.”

  • CAN deplores ‘politicization’ of Dapchi girls’ abduction, release

    The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) is unhappy at what it sees as politicization of the abduction and release of the Dapchi schoolgirls.

    The association, in a statement in Abuja yesterday, said politicians should “live up to expectation in the discharge of their official assignments.”

    It also asked the Federal Government to set up a high power judicial panel to investigate the abduction of the school girls with a view to unmasking those behind the abduction and make them face the full wrath of the law.

    Pastor Bayo Oladeji, the Media Adviser to CAN President, who signed the statement, said government should release the report of the Presidential panel set up to investigate the abduction and release of the schoolgirls.

    It rejoiced with the families of the 105 Dapchi schoolgirls who regained their freedom, but said it was “deeply worried, surprised and disappointed that not all the girls were rescue and, indeed, that one of them was left behind simply because of her Christian faith.”

    It added: “CAN condemns in strong terms the politicization of the abduction and release of the innocent Dapchi schoolgirls, appealing to politicians to live up to the expectation in the discharge of their official assignments.

    “The Federal Government should set up a high power judicial panel to investigate the abduction of the schoolgirls with a view to unmasking those behind the abduction and make them face the full wrath of the law;

    “The report of the panel purportedly set up by the Presidency to investigate the abduction should be released immediately to the public.

    “The National Assembly should conduct a public hearing on the Dapchi abduction saga to expose any cover-up.

    “The Federal Government should name the five students said to have died while in captivity with compensation paid to the bereaved parents.

    “We also demand the immediate release of the remaining Chibok girls in Boko Haram captivity and reunion with their families.

    “We once again demand a total re-organisation of the security agencies aligned with professionalism that will make them respond rapidly to security challenges in any part of the country.

    “We desire a proactive security system.”

  • PDP: Abduction stage managed

    The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has alleged that the abduction and the eventual release of the 110 Dapchi girls were stage managed.

    National Publicity Secretary Kola Ologbondiyan condemned the All Progressives Congress (APC) and certain officials in the Presidency for staging the abduction and release of the schoolgirls for political reasons.

    The PDP described the development as crime against humanity, drama and a scam that was poorly planned by the APC and certain officials in the Presidency.

  • How I was kidnapped, chained by Evans for 88 days, abduction victim Dunu tells court

    Chief Donatus Dunu, one of the victims of alleged billionaire kidnapper, Chukwudumeme Onwuamadike alias Evans, yesterday narrated to an Ikeja Special Offences Court how he was kidnapped and how he escaped from his abductors.

    He made the disclosure while he was being led in evidence before Justice Hakeem Oshodi by the Director Public Prosecution (DPP), Ms Titi Shitta-Bey.

    Dunu told the court that he spent 88 days in the kidnappers’ den situated in Igando part of Lagos before he escaped.

    He said: “I closed from work around 7.30 pm when an SUV double-crossed me in Ilupeju and a man came down from the car and pointed a long gun at me.

    “He dragged me down, pushed me into the booth of their car and covered it.

    “I found myself in their den, and during an interaction with their chairman, Evans, on the phone, he threatened that it was only God that could save me from their hands, and that no man would ever find me even if they killed me.”

    He said one day, after spending 88 days with the kidnappers, he overheard them discussing what should be done to him.

    “I overheard one of the kidnappers tell others that the best option was to kill me since my brothers were not acting fast in paying the one million Euro ransom they had demanded.

    “But after I prayed in the midnight of the Thursday before the Friday they scheduled to kill me, I wrapped the bedspread in the room where they kept me round the shackles on my legs like the one used to chain mad people, and the padlocks opened up.

    “I quietly went out of the room where they kept me. I found the kidnapper guarding me in deep  sleep on a three-seater in the parlour.

    “I walked to the kitchen and found the door and the protector open. I eased my way through loose locks and surprisingly found a ladder in the compound that aided my escape into the next compound.

    “On the day I jumped into the next compound, which was also a bungalow like the one I was kept in, I sustained injuries.

    “In addition, I was looking very unkempt and haggard.”

    He said when the couple who lived inside the compound into which he  jumped saw him, they were scared.

    He said: “They threatened to call security in the street or the police. I told them to call the police. But just when they were about to do that, electricity went off and they abandoned me and went back to sleep.

    “At that time, I realised that the kidnappers had started looking for me, so I hid somewhere in the compound till morning.

    “The couple woke up to see me and decided to call the street chairman. But before they could do that, a young man of about 24 years old flogged and chased me out of the compound.

    “I got to a nursery school around the kidnappers’ den and the corporate guards there didn’t still believe my story.

    “Somehow, another man who listened to my story decided to call my wife and cousin when I gave him their numbers.”

    Dunu said it was only his  cousin’s phone that connected and they spoke.

    “So the man became convinced  that I was not a thief. He then took me to Idimu Police Station from where they contacted Ilupeju Police Station where my brothers initially logged complaint of my kidnap.

    “From there, we went to Anti-cultism and Kidnap in Surulere, and from there to the Lagos State Police Commissioner’s office, from where all us went to the kidnappers’ den.

    “Thereafter, I was taken to Police House in Lagos where I saw Evans and the second defendant. Also at Agege police station, I saw the fourth defendant known as Congo, who is from my home town.

    “At the meetings, they pleaded that I should forgive them, that it was devil that pushed them.”

    During cross examination, the counsel to the 1st, 2nd and 4th defendants, Olukoya Ogungbede, reminded the victim that he wrote in his statement at the police that he was kidnapped in April but told the court that it was in February.

    Dunu  responded that it was a mistake.

    Justice Oshodi has adjourned the matter till May 11, 2018 for continuation of cross examination.