A human rights advocate, Charles Ogbu, has described the SBM Intelligence report ranking Anambra State as the headquarters of kidnapping as a huge indictment on Governor Charles Soludo, the Nigeria Police Force, and other security agencies.
The statement comes after the SBM Intelligence report stated that 27 out of Nigeria’s 36 states recorded ransom payments to kidnappers between July 2023 and July 2024, with Anambra State recording the highest ransom paid at N350 million.
Reacting to the development, Ogbu lamented that there is hardly a day that someone is not kidnapped in the state, including clerics, businessmen, and students.
In a post on his Facebook page on Friday, Ogbu alleged that everyone who lives in the state knows about the issue but has chosen to be silent about it.
He, therefore, urged Soludo not to wait for President Bola Tinubu, stressing that the governor needs to step up before the people lose one of the most important parts of Igbo land to criminals.
Ogbu’s words: “As Anambra Becomes Nigeria’s Kidnapping Capital:
“Yesterday, the SBM Intelligence report covering July 2023 to July 2024 ranked Anambra as the headquarters of ransom-for-kidnapping in the country, with around N350 million paid by Anambra victims to kidnappers, with many killed even after the ransom was paid. This is far ahead of the second-placed Rivers, which recorded N67 million in ransom payments by victims of kidnapping.
“This is a huge indictment on the Nigeria Police Force and other security agencies and, above all, the Governor Charles Chukwuma Soludo-led government in the state.
“Just last week Wednesday, a man who parked his car to buy suya close to the G.R.A gate ran into the local government secretariat right opposite that popular suya joint, but the kidnappers followed him right inside the secretariat and still took him. That same week, just a small traffic jam from Sea Breeze Hotel after Sharon Hall to that 33 Road close to the G.R.A gate, saw gunmen diligently robbing almost all the cars in the traffic.
“There is hardly a day that someone is not kidnapped in the state, from reverend fathers to businessmen to students. No one is spared.
“The worst part is that everyone who lives in the state knows about this, but there appears to be a conspiracy of silence on this issue.
“To develop AlaIgbo and encourage Aku-Ruo-Uno, we must be ready to call out special cases of this nature and put pressure on the governor and those in charge to do something. Silence DOES NOT CUT IT!
“Soludo should not wait for Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who clearly ‘no send anybody.’ Before Mr. Peter Obi’s tenure, Anambra was a no-go area, but he came in and tackled it squarely. Soludo needs to step up before we lose one of the most important parts of AlaIgbo to criminals.”
Kidnapping: N350m paid as ransom indictment on Soludo, security agencies – Ogbu