I Sold My Official Car To Pay Ransom To Bandits Who Kidnapped My Wife, Children — Sokoto LG Boss Tells Panel

The immediate past Chairman of Gudu Local Government Area (LGA) of Sokoto State, Bello Wakili Bachaka, said he sold his official vehicle to pay over N4 million ransom to bandits for the release of his kidnapped wife and two children.

Bachaka, who served from April 2021 to April 2023, told the State Judicial Commission of Inquiry on Monetization of Official Vehicles that toward the end of his tenure, his wife and two children were kidnapped by bandits who demanded over N4 million as ransom.

According to him, it was the situation that prompted him to sell his official Toyota Hilux vehicle to pay ransom to bandits to secure the release of his family.

The ex-chairman was testifying before the State Judicial Commission of Enquiry into the activities of the immediate past administration in the state from (2015 to 2023), on memo number four concerning the 23 LGA vehicles monetization policy.

The witness testified on Monday before the commission’s Presiding Judge, Justice Mu’azu Pindiga also maintained that he sold the vehicle and paid over N4 million to the bandit before they released the three of his families to him.

“I had no option than to dispose of the monetized Toyota Hilux vehicle to pay ransom to Kidnappers.”

He explained that, after bargained with the kidnappers, the then chairman took the said amount to the bandit in one of the villages, in Wurno Local Government Area of the state where he paid the money to the bandit after which they set them free.

Bachaka pleaded with the Sokoto State government to consider his present predicament, saying he presently could not afford to buy the vehicle or refund the cost as his gratuities and other allowances were not being paid.

“I was invited to give what I know about the Toyota vehicle which was auctioned to me by the former administration of Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal.

“The vehicles were actioned to us with an agreement that the state government will pay vehicles money from our benefits emoluments gratuities and furniture allowances benefits to settle the payments of the vehicles while lamenting on how they were not settled their remaining gratuities balance after the payment of the vehicles as agreed upon in the memorandum of understanding, unfortunately, our remaining retirement allowances balance was not paid till this moment.

“Government should consider our present predicament as our balance of severance gratuity is still being held and not being paid.

“We were not given a single kobo in the name of our retirement benefit despite that we served for two years as local government chairmen.

“We prayed and hoped the present state government would give us our remaining balance to continue to cater to our families.

“The former administration had deducted a huge amount from our furniture and gratuities allowance to pay for the Hilux Toyota vehicles and they have not given us any documents to prove the payments of the vehicles,” Bachaka told the panel.