Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has criticized the Federal Government’s handling of kidnappers, accusing President Bola Tinubu’s administration of treating terrorists and bandits with excessive leniency.
Atiku’s comments came through his spokesman, Paul Ibe, shortly after the presidency announced the release of schoolgirls abducted in Kebbi State, alongside other students freed in Niger State and 38 worshippers from Kwara State, reportedly without ransom payments.
In a statement, Ibe said:
“Under Tinubu, terrorists and bandits have effectively become an alternative government negotiating, collecting ransom, and walking away unharmed, while the presidency celebrates their ‘compliance.'”
He added:
“No serious nation congratulates itself for negotiating with terrorists or allowing abductors to escape and strike again. If security agencies truly had eyes on these criminals, letting them go is a national disgrace that raises questions of complicity.”
Ibe described comments by the President’s Special Adviser on Information, Bayo Onanuga, as an attempt to whitewash government failures.
Atiku stressed that the release of abductees should not be seen as a “trophy moment” but as a warning that kidnappers now operate freely, negotiate openly, and dictate terms, while the government issues statements to save face.
He questioned the government’s approach:
“If security agencies were tracking these kidnappers in real time, why were they not arrested or neutralized immediately? Why is the government boasting about talking to terrorists instead of dismantling their networks? Has kidnapping become just a routine phone call between criminals and state officials?”
Atiku noted that Nigerians need real protection, not public relations statements celebrating temporary releases of abductees.
