2023: Nigerians may elect kidnappers if care is not taken – criminologist

A criminologist, Dr. Oludayo Tade, has warned Nigerians wary of some  personalities contesting for elective political positions during the 2023 general elections, saying some of them might be kidnappers that have amassed wealth from collecting ransoms.

Trade, who is a university lecturer, gave the warning  in the lecture, entitled: ‘Rising Cases of Kidnapping: Beyond Ethnic Stereotype, Mirroring Local Causes and Solutions’, at a security summit held at the SAF Group of Schools’ Hall, Iseyin, Iseyin Local Government Area of Oyo State at the weekend. The summit was convened by a journalist and community newspaper publisher, Mr. Alhazan Abiodun.

Critical stakeholders, including the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), Department of State Services (DSS), Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS), Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Amotekun Corps, and non-state actors that comprised Iseyin community leaders and leadership of Fulani/Hausa community, attended the security summit and proffered solutions to the crimes and criminalities in Iseyin, especially recent upsurge in kidnapping cases on the town.

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Four farm hands were kidnapped in a farm settlement some weeks ago, in which one of the victims was killed, while three regained their freedom after payment of N10million ransom. The development as gathered, has made some farmers to abandon their farms over tne insecurity.

According to Tade: “As things are going, we may elect kidnappers in 2023, with the successes they record from their operations around the country. We all should know that they now have so much money for them to do whatever they like, and as you know about Nigerians, they may even vie for political posts.

“The onus is on us residents to localise our approach to curbing criminalities, especially kidnapping, knowing fully well that our state actors are performing their roles but are limited by insufficient logistics, inappropriate weaponry, mobility and other inputs. It is important that we give them our support.”

The Chairman of the occasion, Alhaji Ahmed Raji (SAN), who was represented by a former Chairman of Iseyin local government, Alhaji Saheed Alaran, who appreciated the convener of the summit, saying the meeting came at the right time. He noted that kidnapping cases have permeated the whole nation and have caused so much negative effects on the local economy.

He enjoined the people to make haste in reporting suspicious people and activities to the security personnel or the traditional head in the particular area, in the case of fear of leakage of identity.

The representative of the traditional rulers, who is the Baale of Alokongbo community in Iseyin, Chief Adesokan Olaniyi, called on the leadership of the Fulani herders in Iseyin community to have the data and other information of migrating herders so as to be able to monitor them and dissuade them from perpetrating crime.