Nigerians have been asked to dare kidnappers and their kinsmen in the crime world by refusing to pay them ransom but defend themselves against the evil artists.
This was the message the Kaduna State chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Rev. Joseph Hayab, sent to Nigerians, Saturday, saying ransom is like oxygen to the kidnappers and their
Hayab, who was among those, who negotiated the release of the six female students and two staff of Engravers College, Kakau Daji, Kaduna State, told journalists, Saturday, that rather than pay ransom, Nigerians must mobilise and confront those terrorising them.
The CAN boss revealed, during the interactive session, that reprieve came the way of the Engravers College captives only after some well- meaning Nigerians raised additional the N10 million ransom paid for the students’ release.
Two weeks ago, the kidnappers were paid N3.6 million, yet they refused to release the girls. They insisted it’s N10 million or continuous captivity for the girls. The negotiations were that perilous.
“Nigerians should not continue to be impoverished by the nefarious activities of bandits,” Rev. Hayab said, insisting that no effort should be spared to end the evil of terrorism and banditry in our land.
The Kaduna CAN boss continued: “Communities must defend themselves against these bandits terrorising them and stop giving them money, because the more we give them money, the more we are encouraging them to continue to perpetrate this evil.
“We did our best to get these children out and we have learnt too many lessons. We are just enriching the kidnappers and encouraging them to continue with this evil over and over again.”
Hayab wasn’t done. He announced that CAN would never again support payment of ransom to kidnappers. He also admonished the government to live up to its primary constitutional mandate and role of protecting lives and property.
“We, in CAN, will continue to shout and call on government to be responsible to security matters,” he said categorically. “We will not support giving kidnappers money.”
He advised school proprietors to take adequate security measures to protect their institutions “because these kidnappers are out for a serious business and we must not give them space.”
Despite claims by the police high command that kidnapping and banditry have been amputated and had nosedived, the recent abduction of an Assistant Commissioner of Police, Musa Rabo in Kaduna and a Federal High Court Judge in Ondo State, Justice Abdul Dogo, pointed in contrary direction.
Both abducted high profile personalities only regained their freedom after ransoms were paid.
