Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai has insisted that his government will not pay any ransom or negotiate with bandits despite continued attacks and kidnapping in the state.
He said the kidnappers had resorted to blackmail and killing as part of their efforts to compel his government to ditch it policy.
In a statement by the Special Adviser to the Governor on Media and Communication, Muyiwa Adekeye, on Tuesday, El-Rufai said the fact that criminals seek to hold the state by the jugular does not mean it should surrender and create an incentive for more crime.
This is coming after a video started going viral where El-Rufai asked former President Goodluck Jonathan to negotiate with Boko Haram for the release of Chibok girls in 2014.
He therefore, blasted those recalling the statement he made in 2014 where he called on the former President Goodluck Jonathan to use all options, including negotiation, to rescue the Chibok girls, adding that the incident had proven that the solution to violent crimes was a robust response from the state and its coercive agencies.
The statement titled, ‘Surrender to criminals is not an option, reads in part, “We regret the recent kidnaps and killings of students from tertiary institutions in our state, and we sympathise with their families with whom we share the aim of the safe return of all the students.
“In today’s Nigeria, it has become fashionable to treat the unlawful demands of bandits as worthy of consideration and to lampoon people who insist that outlaws should be crushed and not mollycoddled or availed the resources they can use to unleash further outrages.
“Nigeria’s journey since the tragedy has proven that the solution to violent crimes, including terrorism and banditry, is a robust response from the state and its coercive agencies. The quantum of money paid as ransom following many negotiations with bandits have not stopped kidnappings, reduced their frequency or deterred the criminals.”
