N’West: Anxiety over safety on campuses as bandits target female undergraduates
BY HARUNA SALAMI
The insecurity in the country, particularly, North West Nigeria has taken a new and worrisome dimension with the kidnap of 5 female students of Federal University, Dutsinma on October 4, 2023.
A fortnight earlier, 24 school students of Federal University of Gusau were also abducted, but fortunately, 16 of them were successfully freed 3 days later during the rescue conducted by security agencies.
The case of eight corps members kidnapped in Zamfara state on Monday, August 21, 2023 by suspected terrorists on their way to camp in Sokoto state is still fresh in our memories.
The corps members were traveling in an Akwa Ibom Transport Company (AKTC) bus from Uyo, Akwa Ibom state to Sokoto state, for the one-year mandatory national service, when their vehicle was intercepted by the terrorists.
The disturbing trend made Senator Abdulaziz Musa Yar’adua (Katsina Central) to raise a “Point of Order on matters of urgent National Importance” and sponsored a “Motion on Kidnapping of university students in Federal University Dutsinma, Katsina state on Wednesday October 4, 2023 and the rising cases of kidnapping for ransom in the Northwest geopolitical zone”.
Senator Yar’adua said recently there was a voice message by one of the notorious kingpin known as Dogo Dije who has promised that he has just started kidnapping and armed robbery, that any time he abducts 10 people, he will make sure he kills 7 and free 3, adding that “this is very disturbing and the FG to take very serious action on it”.
For Senator Kaka Shehu Lawan (Borno Central) the security situation in North West Nigeria and Nigeria in general is “very alarming” adding that the Senate must rise to the occasion by calling those saddled with the responsibility of protecting lives and property rise to the occasion and do the needful.
He said as representatives of the people, all hands must be on deck at their own end by “calling a spade a spade”.
He recalled how the Senate extracted commitments from the Service Chiefs and other security agencies that appeared before the upper chamber for confirmation, that any time they are called to do the needful, they will rise to the occasion.
“This situation is very alarming, particularly female students in a university hostel being abducted and nothing is heard about it till date”, Senator Kaka said
According to him, section 14 (2, d) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended), “the security and welfare of the people shall be the primary purpose of government”.
President of the 9th Senate, Ahmed Lawan, in his contribution to the debate in the motion recalled how the 8th and 9th National Assembly organised Summits on National Security Infrastructure with Service Chiefs and heads of other security agencies in attendance.
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He said the resolution was transmitted to the executive arm of the government, but not much was achieved.
He urged the new government of President Bola Tinubu to devise ways of tracking the performance of the security chiefs after providing necessary resources to them.
Therefore, the Senate resolved to invite the National Security Adviser (NSA), Service Chiefs, DG DSS, and Inspector General of Police (IGP) to address the senators in closed session over the recent spate of kidnapping of female students of Federal Universities Dutsinma, Katsina state and Gusau, Zamfara state and the 8 Youth Corps members in Zamfara on their way from Akwa Ibom state to Sokoto state.
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