The Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Christopher Musa, has given insight into how some unnamed individuals are doing everything possible to sabotage the government’s efforts to address insecurity in the country.
But he stated: “That will not happen.”
General Musa spoke when 58 rescued kidnap victims was handed over to the National Security Adviser (NSA), Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, for a formal handover to the Kaduna State Government.
The NSA formally handed over the 58 kidnapped victims comprising young men, women and children to the Chief of Staff, Kaduna State government, Alhaji Sani Liman Kila who represented Governor Uba Sani at the handover ceremony.
They were first handed over to Ribadu by General Musa.
They were rescued through a joint operation led by the General Officer Commanding (GOC) of 1 Division, Kaduna, Major General MLD Saraso, in the Birnin Gwari area of Kaduna State.
Saying that combating insecurity would require a whole-of-the society approach, the Defence Chief said: “I know the question is how were they rescued? It’s a joint effort. We were able to do that through non-kinetic means of getting across. No penny was paid for these individuals.
“This is what has made us achieve this success. You can see from the people, the women, the children, both girls and boys, and the little one. The question you want to ask is why would somebody kidnap these kinds of people? If you see them, they are barely just providing.
“And that is to tell you that there are individuals that on their own are trying to make it impossible for the government to succeed. They are doing everything possible to sabotage the efforts of the government. That will not happen. I urge Nigerians to understand that we can only succeed by working together. Combating insecurity requires a whole-of-society approach.
“I want Nigerians to understand that if we do not come together to work, it will make it extremely difficult for us to succeed. Success depends on all of us working together. It’s a whole-of-society approach.
“You can see from these people — the women, the children, both girls and boys and even the little ones. The question is: why would anyone kidnap such vulnerable individuals? These are people barely surviving.”
He said the kidnappings, particularly of farmers in their farms, “is to tell you that there are individuals that on their own, are trying to make it impossible for the government to succeed. They are doing everything possible to sabotage the efforts of the government. That will not happen.
“Today is Saturday, the 16th of November, 2024. Part of the operations, as we have always said, is we are doing the kinetic and the non-kinetic. The kinetic being carried out by the military.
“The non-kinetic is a combined effort by all. And we have told you, for us to succeed, we need all Nigerians to take ownership of this operation, and that is what is happening. What we are seeing out of this number is the success of the collaboration right from the top, from the presidency, from the Office of the National Security Advisor, Ministry of Defence to the Defence Headquarters – all agencies working together, including Kaduna State. The Governor has been very, very supportive and very helpful. It is this collaborative effort that has made it possible for us to be able to rescue these individuals.”
Also speaking at the handover ceremony, the National Coordinator of the National Counter-Terrorism Centre, Major General Adamu Laka, revealed that preliminary investigations indicated the victims were kidnapped by suspected armed bandits under the command of a notorious leader known as Janbros.
According to him, “during the kidnapping, the victims were forced to trek hundreds of kilometres to the thick forest of Birnin Gwari.
“The government provided them with all necessary support for their stabilisation, including rehabilitation and medical check-ups. Six victims were admitted to hospital but have since recovered and joined the others for the handover to their respective families.”
The Chief of Staff to the Kaduna State Governor, Sani Limankila, expressed gratitude to the security agencies.