Socio-Economic Cost of Kidnapping in Nigeria

Dr. Shettima Ali Monguno, the former Minister of Petroleum Resources in the Federal Republic of Nigeria, has been kidnap and held for ransom. He is 87-years-old., a photo by Pan-African News Wire File Photos on Flickr.

Socio-economic cost of kidnapping

Wednesday, 20 November 2013 00:00
by Alemma-Ozioruva Aliu, Benin City
Nigerian Guardian

KIDNAPPING, which was not prevalent in Nigeria some few years back, has become a menace in virtually all the states of the federation especially in the Southsouth and Southeast, Nigeria.

The crime, which started as an option by militants in the Niger Delta Region as part of their crusade against marginalisation and underdevelopment of the oil rich region and to draw the attention of multi-national companies involved in oil exploration in the region, suddenly became more, pronounced than armed robbery.

What initially started with abduction of expatriate oil workers for a ransom and in some cases just to make a point by some of the militants to drive home their demand for better treatment for their people suddenly became commercialised and pundits believed that was the beginning of Nigeria’s bitter experience of kidnapping.

Businessmen, politicians, clerics, traditional rulers, teachers, doctors even children became victims of kidnapping to extort ransom from family members who, most often, because of threats of kidnappers negotiate their relations or wards release without the involvement of security agencies.

While security agencies have always called for their involvement in incidences of kidnapping to ensure proper intelligence and investigation that could lead to the arrest of suspected kidnappers and possible prosecution, some victims have also become sacred as suspected kidnappers on accurate information have also given detailed movements of victims relations.

Beyond the threat to life and fears of the crimes, it has also taken its toll on the socio-economic activities in various cities across the country.

For instance, Benin City, Edo state capital known for its social life and bubbles few years ago became a ghost of itself as night life gradually eroded the city not because the people don’t want to, but because of incidences of kidnappings and other crimes. These vices are buoyed by poor infrastructure, bad road network pitch dark.

Nightlife in the city had always been admirable as most hotels, clubhouses and drinking spots are filled to capacity.

Apart from weekends, most hotels and social places were filled to capacity during the week as both the old, the young and travelers from southwest, southeast and northern parts of the country pass the nights in Benin City.

Some notable spots included onetime bubbling Time out, Aso Time, Anavini, Indigo, Tunnel, Hexagon and several others across the city. There are also several hotels scattered across the state capital especially in the GRA area with live bands, disc jockeys doing what they know best.

The Guardian met a night crawler who simply identified herself as Joan along Ugbagwe notorious for night activities for women and fun seekers who confirmed that there was revival in nightlife activities.

She said; “I have been operating here for almost ten years and at a time it was difficult, because people were scared of moving around in the night. There were times some of my friends were gang raped but in recent times, things have been normal so we are gradually returning to the old days.”

Until recently, 8 pm was like midnight in many of these parts of the city. The city centre, Ring Road was a den of hooligans who mostly indulged in pick pocketing, robbery, rape and other vices. Infact, the Museum premises was a ready abode for all sorts of criminal activities while the few fun spots and other dotted spots were visited with utmost vigilance.

But five years ago when the administration of Mr. Adams Oshiomhole came to power, he quickly embarked on massive urban renewal programme with the beautification of the The Oba Ovaranmwen Square, the city was given a facelift starting from the city centre in the King’s Square, now renamed Oba Ovaranmwen Square.

The square was hitherto completely disorganised, dirty and unbefitting of a city centre. It was a nightmare to motorists and pedestrians while it was in total darkness at night.

With the government’s urban renewal programmes which included rehabilitating major roads in the city with street lights, night started crawling back but while the state was about celebrating that, there was upsurge in crime rates which started with clash among rival cult groups and then later kidnappings and armed robbery.

The surge in crime rate almost dwarfed whatever effort the state government had put in place as almost every street was deserted as from 8 pm. It was bad business for operators of public relaxation spots and joints.

But the state government also raised a joint patrol team comprising of men of the Police, Army and Airforce called Operation Thunderstorm and various incentives for men of the police force and personnel for the Department of State Security (DSS).

The anti-crime initiatives by the state government and security agencies coupled with the recent passage of anti-kidnapping law which prescribes death sentence for any convicted kidnapper had buoyed the confidence of the people that night life was indeed possible in the state capital.

And at least one hundred suspected kidnappers in the state stand the risk of facing death sentence following the signing into law of the State kidnapping law by Oshiomhole.

Kidnapping in the state became worrisome after kidnappers unleashed mayhem on citizens of the state, to a level that even teachers were being kidnapped for ransom. Human rights lawyer, Mike Ozekhome, a Benin High Court Judge, Justice Daniel Okungbowa, a chieftain of the APC in the state, Athanacious Ugbome, were among those who suffered the kidnappers onslaught along the Auchi-Abuja road, in Edo State.

Popular businessman, Uyi Technical, Estate Agency giant Dan Odiete, Tes Sorae popularly called Tomeline and several others have been victims of kidnap, which even resulted in the loss of lives including victims and security operatives.

On the day the governor was forced to sign the anti-kidnap law, he was in his office attending to state issues when news filtered in that prominent sons of the state who were on their way from Benin to attend this year’s Esan Professionals Conference, scheduled for Uromi were kidnapped while one was killed almost at the same spot where Ozekhome was kidnapped.

The suspected kidnappers reportedly wore police uniforms with bulletproof vests, stopped the victims and informed them that they were under arrest.

Speaking while signing the law, the governor said that government would do everything within its powers to ensure the safety of lives and property in the state.

According to him: “I have just signed into law a bill amending the Kidnapping Provision Law 2009 as amended by the state House of Assembly which now prescribes death penalty for anyone who is involved in any form of kidnapping.

“We have had enough laws in our statute books that provide for various degrees of punishment for various offences. I think the real challenge is about law enforcement and dealing with the problem of impunity. Laws will be worthless if we do not have the capacity to apprehend, interrogate and persecute criminals and invoke the full weight of the law. I am convinced that within the three arms of government of the legislative, the judiciary and the executive, we have a responsibility to make laws and enforce those laws in a way that would send clear signals to those involved in acts of criminality whether they are kidnappers, armed robbers, rapists that the security agencies are now much more determined than ever before to ensure that this state becomes too hot for criminals to operate.”

Of the number of suspected kidnappers and other criminals so far arrested since the signing of the edict, fifteen of them and fourteen other suspected armed robbers and child defilers were recently paraded by the Edo State Police Commissioner, Folunso Adebanjo.

Adebanjo explained that the 15 suspected kidnappers were arrested in different parts of the state, following the war against kidnapping waged by the state police command. He said, “operatives of the command on routine patrol/stop and search, stopped one Nissan Vannette bus for a routine check, search conducted on the occupants of the bus led to the recovery of arms and ammunition and arrest of two suspects. Investigations however revealed that the suspects are notorious kidnappers who have been terrorising the state and were on a kidnap mission before they were arrested”.

He further narrated that a crack team of detectives who acted on “credible intelligence” arrested one Osarumwense Ogbeide and Osahon Uhunamure at Aduwawa for alleged involvement in various kidnapping cases which occurred in the state recently, adding, “the suspects who have been on the command’s wanted list are notorious criminals who took part in the kidnapping cases reported on the 29/05/2011, 01/02/2012 and 09/02/2012 in the state.

“The arrested suspects who confessed to the crime led the operatives to Idun-Ehigie community were a 60 year-old man, Raphael Noruwa was arrested and one Jojeff Magnum pump action gun was recovered from him. As you can see kidnapping has reduced in Edo and it was as a result of the strategy we adopted which is working.”

But the relative peace in the city is also taking its toll on men of the police as they were being over stretched for lack of sufficient personnel.

The reason being that Benin City is strategic with many link roads that need to be manned for check. From the southern axis of the city, one can easily access areas of southsouth Nigeria like parts of Delta, Rivers, Bayelsa, Cross Rivers and Akwa Ibom and from the eastern part of the state capital, one can connect Asaba, the Delta State capital and then to eastern Nigeria while from the west, there is easy access to parts of Edo northwest through Edo central in Iruekpen, then Owan to Sobe, a border town with Ondo State and then to the western part of Nigeria.

These various outlets need to be manned hence the need for more personnel in the state. For instance, The Guardian gathered that neighbouring Delta State has two squadron of mobile police force compared to Edo’s one, yet Delta also has a naval base and several military presence and this could be attributed to the discovery that most of the kidnappers that have terrorised the state were “migrant criminals”

The governor noted, when he signed the anti-kidnapping law that the overwhelming majority of the criminals were migrant criminals from nieighbouring states and far away to perpetuate crime, adding that everything was done to ensure that the security agencies put a security machinery in place to fight the menace.

He said: “I want to assure the good people of Edo State that government is concerned about the state of kidnapping. We share the pain, the agony and trauma which victims of kidnap are all subjected to, but I assure our people that everything is being done to keep these criminals in check. Having signed into law the death penalty, let me assure the good people of Edo State that as reluctant as one wants to be in matters of life and death. I am convinced that the overriding public interest dictates that we invoke the maximum penalty available in our law on those involved in the act of kidnapping. Anyone sentenced and convicted, I would sign the death warrant.”

However this development and the state government’s vista of hope for a new Benin City has resuscitated nightlife in the state capital.

A tour round the city showed that all the known social spots in the state capital are bubbling and new ones are springing with the people now having more confidence that they are safe with the police in the state.

At two very popular spots: Jonvee along Ikpokpan and Asotime along Ihama Road both in GRA, life was still bubbling as at 1 am.

A waitress in Jonvee told The Guardian; “yes there was a time people were scared of coming out at all, by 7 pm this place would have been deserted. It started during the cult clashes and then kidnapping became rampant, we lost customers and you know the implication, we lost cash too, but things are getting better now as you can see,” she said.