We Are Winning The War Against Kidnappers, Ortom Tells Ndigbo, Others

Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, has reassured the Igbo community and other Nigerians doing business in the state that the current massive onslaught against criminals is yielding results and cases of kidnapping will soon become history.

A press statement signed by the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Fever Akase, and made available to The Nation stated that there is no iota of truth in a report which said kidnappers are targeting Igbo traders in Benue State.

The governor said the combined forces of the army, police and other security agencies have intensified operations, particularly in crime flashpoints and appreciable success is being recorded.

He stated that the recent crackdown on a kidnappers’ hideout at Gbatse in Ushongo Local Government Area, where the kingpin and his gang were apprehended, was a result of the collaboration between his administration and security operatives.

Ortom however described as misleading, the statement published in some national dailies by the International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law which claimed that Igbos in Benue State are targets of “coordinated attacks and threats of annihilation”.

The governor stresses that armed robbers and kidnappers do not recognize ethnicity. They target any individual or group for ransom and other forms of extortion. In Benue, like any other state, people of different ethnic groups have fallen victim to kidnappers.

Ortom stated that what government and security agencies require from all stakeholders is support through intelligence gathering to enable them guarantee the safety of lives and property.

He re-emphasizes the resolve of his administration to sustain the fight against criminal elements and urges the people of the state to go about their normal businesses.

To address the security concerns the Igbo community in Benue State recently raised, Ortom will soon meet with the leadership and other stakeholders of the group.

He encourages representatives of Ndi Igbo in the state to attend the meeting with suggestions on ways of deepening the current security strategies as they affect their members.