Nigeria: Increasing Incidence of Kidnapping As Threat to National Security

Afakriya Gadzama writes that recent times have witnessed a troubling rise in the incidence of kidnapping across parts of Nigeria, posing significant threats to public safety, national security, and socio-economic stability.

Many of us in the National Security Establishment have been taken aback by the sudden emergence of kidnapping and the abduction of schoolchildren in some parts of the country in the last few months. Of particular note are the abduction of over 40 school children in Musa, in Askira Uba Local Government Area of Borno State, and a nearly similar incident at Oriire, Oyo State.

Also very unsettling was the abduction of retired Brigadier-General Abubakar Rabe and his wife in Matazu Local Government Area Council in Katsina State. There have also been several unconfirmed reports of abductions in several states. Also very disheartening were the killings of some military and police personnel in Yobe State by people suspected to be terrorists. These, candidly, are some of the few security incidents that have dented the commendable performance of some security agencies in the country over the past two months.

An honest review of the performance of agencies in the National Security Sector reveals that many of them have performed exceptionally well despite the occasional eruption of some incidents. As repeatedly observed, even pathological critics of some of the security agencies and the Government have sought to know what led to some of the incidents. We, however, caution that these incidents should not be used as parameters for measuring the performance of the security agencies and the state of security in the country. Political sentiments, as consistently observed, should also not be used to measure the performance of the Government of the day.

This is because some of the critics of the President Bola Tinubu government could be beclouded and blindfolded by their parochial biases against the present government.

As previously observed, a charged political atmosphere such as the one the country is passing through at the moment is not helpful for an objective and balanced view of the performance of security agencies in the country. It should be noted that the government and the security agencies are equally concerned with the security situation in the country.

All concerned stakeholders are calling for a balanced appreciation of the handling of the current incidents of abduction in parts of the country. It is our view that President Tinubu should not be blamed for the abduction incident in Musa, Borno State, and the one at Oriire in Oyo State.