Why kidnappings persist in North

The recent kidnapping of Kajuru emir of Kaduna state with some members of his family, though he was later released, but the situation left many in doubt concerning President Muhammadu Buhari’s solemn oath to secure Nigerians.

Mr. President, having due regard to your exalted office, recent unfolding happenings constrain me to tell you loud and clear that kidnappers remained stubbornly resolute in their bid to wreck havoc on innocent people. Precisely, if a ruler of a whole particular community isn’t safe from being abducted, imagine, who’s safe from being maimed or kidnapped? People from most parts of the north western states are living with palpable fear of being attacked, or kidnapped by heavily armed bandits. Activities of kidnappings, armed banditry continue to cripple most of our daily activities.


Abductors have become a cog into the progressive wheels of the north. It’s deeply exasperating how criminals are having a field day with no scruples to attack, kidnapped innocent citizens at their own chosen time. For fear of being abducted, our children have deserted their respective schools with no intention to return. To cut it short, some northern children are presently captives in kidnappers’ den receiving harsh treatments, every kind of molestations, harassments with no end in sight about their release.


Kidnapping, banditry and other crime activities rage on in some parts of the north, more worrisome going on smoothly unchallenged. Commuting through the lengths and breadths of some north western roads is now frightful. We have abandoned rural communities living at the mercy of armed bandits as if they don’t share the same right with urban communities in terms of security. In some rural areas, some of their places have been deserted thereby becoming no-go areas with rampaging bandits daily killing, unleashing dreadful activities, and making large scale abductions.


With scores of people being kidnapped, killed on daily basis, particularly in some parts of Kaduna, Zamfara, Katsina, Kebbi, I don’t think one can imagine this could happen under Buhari’s leadership. Are we not capable enough to flush the criminals out from their hiding places? Why can’t we deploy more adequate troops to secure rural communities against the harmful, injurious, well-armed devastating bandits? Are rural communities not Nigerians? In spite of the presence of complete security apparatus, some roads of the northern states have now been forcefully taken by happy menacing marauders, thereby forcing innocent citizens to abandon those roads.


It’s utterly disgusting to hear that it is now a common trend to see people in various mosques and other people’s gatherings begging to raise ransom to liberate their family member(s) held captive in kidnappers’ den. Although, I’m now sitting on a layman’s chair concerning the country’s constitution and judicial processes but if it takes President Buhari to take another oath of office for him to redeem his pledge to liberate us from the hands of kidnappers and daily ravaging bandits, let it be. Besides the oaths they have taken during their swearing ceremonies, in case they might have forgotten how they promised to dedicate themselves to their citizen’s well-being, I think there is the need for President Buhari, governors of Kaduna, Katsina, Niger, Kebbi and Zamfara states to repeat a second oath of office. Taking another oath of office might eventually serve as a reminder to them to dutifully serve their citizens.


Abbas Datti,
Kano
[email protected]