Ogun State First Class Monarch, The Eselu of Iselu, Yewa North Local Government Area, Oba Akintunde Akinyemi has condemned a proposed bill seeking to criminalise ransom payment to kidnappers in Nigeria as being debated in the hallowed chamber of the Senate.
He asked the Nigerian government to first develop a security strategy that will make the Nigeria Police Force and other security forces to posses the competence and capacity to aggressively confront the crime securely f kidnaping in the country.
Recalled that the Nigeria Senate on Wednesday passed for second reading, a bill seeking 15-year jail term for anyone caught paying ransom to kidnappers.
Oba Akinyemi expressed his concern on the proposed bill in an open letter to the Senate President, Ahmed Lawan, said the bill proposing a 15-year jail term for prayers of ransom to kidnappers is a misplaced priority, unpopular and needles.
Oba Akinremi said, “With all sense of honesty, I totally condemn the menace of kidnapping that has now ravaged our dear country, Nigeria.”
“As a patrotic citizen, I will always support any steps that governments at all levels take with the view to ridding our country off all manners of criminalities, including the crime of kidnapping that is sadly gaining more currency/popularity in our country these days”.
While condemning the bill, the Ogun State First Class traditional ruler said, “I feel the Bill that is proposing a 15-year jail term for payers of ransom to kidnappers is a misplaced priority, unpopular and needless at this precious time because governments at all levels have failed in their responsibility to protect the lives and property of Nigerian citizens due mainly to the poor security architecture in the entire country”.
“If families of kidnapped persons cannot pay ransom due to the proposed Bill and government too does not have an effective security architecture to rescue the victims, it then means that the victims of kidnapping will be in the kidnappers’ dens till eternity. Lives of some of them may even be in danger in the hands of their abductors. Will that not amount to a double jeopardy for the victims’ families? I am sure the children of the proponents of the Bill are not in this unsecure country”.
“To me, the first thing we should do is to develop a security strategy that will make the Nigeria Police Force and other Security Forces possess the competence and capacity to aggressively confront the crime of kidnapping in Nigeria”.
“If we want the Bill to be popular, the Federal Government should first rescue Leah Sharibu and other hundreds of innocent Nigerians who are still being held in kidnappers’ dens in all the nooks and crannies of our country, Nigeria”.
Oba Akinremi however urged the Government to put in place an effective Nigeria Police Rescue Team, boost the morale of the men of the Nigeria Police Force and other Security agencies in the country to enable them put in all their best.
