Atiku Asks Buhari To Stop Paying Ransom To Kidnappers

The former presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2019 general elections, Atiku Abubakar, has asked President Muhammadu Buhari to stop payment of ransom to kidnappers who abduct school children in the north.

Atiku, who was reacting to Monday’s kidnap of school children and teachers by gunmen in a Local Education Authority (LEA) Primary School in Rama village, Birnin Gwari Local Government Area of Kaduna State, condemned the federal government’s policy of ransom payment as a short-term solution which would cause long term destruction.

According to him, “We must also stop paying ransom at random. It is a short-term solution that will cause much long-term destruction. We must, as a nation, impose law and order now, or we will bequeath lawlessness and disorder to the next generation. And may God forbid that.”

Atiku also regretted that with about 13.5 million children out of school, and given the spate of the abduction of school children, Nigeria is already the world headquarters for out of school kids.

Lamenting that President Buhari must act decisively to excise this cancer of school abductions from our polity with clinically precise policies, the PDP chieftain called on the President to declare a state of emergency in areas affected and to post 24-hour armed guards at schools in the affected areas.

“With the latest school abduction, I repeat my call for the FG to declare a state of emergency in the education sector and to post 24-hour armed guards at every school in the affected and neighbouring states. No expense must be spared to keep our schools safe.

“With 13.5 million children, Nigeria is already the world headquarters for out of school kids. This can only make things worse. It behoves on us as a nation to act decisively and excise this cancer of school abductions from our polity with clinically precise policies.”

Meanwhile, the Kaduna State Commissioner for Internal Security and Home Affairs, Mr Samuel Aruwan, who confirmed the incident in a statement on Monday, said the state government had received reports of the incident.

Aruwan said, “The Kaduna State Government is receiving security reports of kidnapping of some pupils and teachers in a primary school located in Rema, Birnin Gwari Local Government Area.

“According to preliminary reports, the incident occurred at an LEA Primary School in the LGA.

“The Kaduna State Government is currently obtaining details on the actual number of pupils and teachers reported to have been kidnapped and will issue a comprehensive statement as soon as possible.”