CITIZENS COMPASS— 24 hours after the trending video of a bandit threatening to kidnap governors, soldiers and politicians, a former Deputy Speaker of the Federal House of Representatives, Idris Wase, on Wednesday, raised alarm over the threats.
The lawmaker lamented the rising spate of insurgency, the threats by bandits and their effects on the lawmakers.
Wase made this point while the House continued its debate on security challenges urging President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to review his recent order that Police officers attached to Very Important Personelities should be withdrawn.
The President had earlier instructed the police to pull officers away from VIP duties and return them to regular policing. His directive followed a security meeting in Abuja with Service Chiefs and the Director-General of the Department of State Services.
Under the new system, VIPs who need protection must now request armed guards from the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) rather than the police.
According to the Presidency, the change is intended to strengthen policing across the country, especially in places where police manpower is weak and communities face serious security risks.
But Wase believes the new policy needs clearer details. He said there was once a situation where Boko Haram suspects were discovered on the recruitment list of both the Army and the Police, raising concerns about infiltration. He argued that the government should clearly define who qualifies as a VIP before implementing the withdrawal.
Nigeria has battled a long and painful history of abductions. More than 1,500 schoolchildren have been kidnapped since 2014, beginning with the Chibok schoolgirls incident where 276 girls were taken.
The crisis worsened again last week. According to the Christian Association of Nigeria, at least 300 students and staff were taken from St. Mary’s Catholic boarding school in Niger State, with about 250 still missing. The attack was the third major abduction in just one week and forced President Tinubu to cancel his planned trip to the G20 summit in South Africa to focus on the emergencies.
There was some relief when 24 girls kidnapped from a school in Kebbi State were freed after more than a week in captivity. Armed men had stormed their school on November 17, killed two staff members, and abducted 25 students. One girl escaped shortly after.
President Tinubu commended security agencies for what he described as their “swift response,” although the details surrounding the release remain unclear.
Nigeria continues to face repeated kidnapping incidents, and more than 250 children taken from a Catholic school last Friday are still unaccounted for.
—GWG
