The Federal Executive Council (FEC) has warned against the act of raising money through crowdfunding to pay ransoms for kidnapped victims, noting that rather than solve the problem, it will worsen it. Minister of Defence, Abubakar Badaru, stated this on Wednesday while briefing news men on the outcome of the FEC meeting presided over by President Bola Tinubu at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The warning followed a move led by former minister of communications and digital economy, Isa Pantami, to raise funds to pay the ransom demanded by the abductors of five daughters of Mansoor Al-Kadriya still in their custody after killing the most senior, Nabeeha.
The former minister had announced on his X account that the sum of N50 million had been raised out of the original N60 million demanded by the kidnappers as ransom for the girls abducted with their father from their house in Bwari Council, Abuja, on December 26, 2023.
Badaru noted that the government is deeply concerned about the kidnappings, but added that paying ransoms through public donations will exacerbate the problem.
He said: “We all know there’s an existing law against payment of ransom. So, it is very sad for people to go over the internet, radio asking for donations to pay ransom. This will only worsen the situation, it will not help the situation at all as you have seen.
“Initially, they asked for N60 million, and now because of this funding, and I learned somebody has raised N50 million already through friends and media, they jacked up the ransom.
“We believe we have to stop as painful as it is, we have to stop responding to payment on ransom. If we stop, overtime the kidnapping will not be profitable and they will stop.
“It is not easy though but that is the law that you are know. So, we want to call on the people to manage the kidnapping situation intelligently and very quietly, because talking too much about it most especially raising funds through the public, media is not productive at all and should be discontinued.”
The minister blamed the rising insecurity in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) on bandits fleeing the northwest and the north-central because of the ongoing military operations to rout them.
While noting that President Tinubu was aware of the matter and had discussed it with service chiefs, he said: “So, concerted efforts are being done by security and stop it immediately.
“As you are aware, people are saying FCT, FCT. These kidnappings happen around the suburb and locations that are bothering Kaduna and Niger. And this is a result of the current operations going on in the northwest and some parts of North Central.
“The bandits are fleeing and they are getting shelters around these areas and the security agencies are working very hard to push them out, block the movement, and finish this thing once and for all.
“The president has given us the marching order and all the support that we need and what the security agencies need to end this thing.”