OKPEBHOLO SHOULD BE ASHAMED THAT SEMINARIANS KIDNAPPED WEEKS BACK HAD TO BEG FOR THEIR LIVES
The pro-democracy and civil rights advocacy group; HUMAN RIGHTS WRITERS ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA (HURIWA) has condemned the Edo State Governor, Monday Okpebholo for failing to stop or minimise cases of kidnapping in his state. The cases of kidnapping in Nigeria and Edo State in particular are rising, and taking dangerous dimensions.
HURIWA particularly decried the failure of the Edo State governor to successfully work towards rescuing the junior Roman Catholic Seminarians of Auchi Catholic Diocese taken away by armed terrorists believed to be ISLAMISTS but rather the governor is engrossed in mundane activities such as holding illegal political campaigns for the re-election of the current President who is just two years and half into his four year tenure in office as president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
The people of Edo State are increasingly losing confidence in the governor’s ability to provide security, and the state’s reputation as a hub for kidnapping is a direct result of the governor’s administration’s failure to learn from previous incidents. The governor’s responses have been inadequate, and the lack of urgency in addressing the security situation is alarming.
HURIWA claims Edo State Governor’s administration has failed to protect its citizens, as seen in the recent abduction of seminarians from the Catholic Immaculate Conception Minor Seminary School, Agenebode. The kidnappers’ boldness is a direct result of the governor’s inability to address the growing kidnapping problem in the state.
The video of the abducted seminarians begging for their lives, surrounded by masked gunmen and holding human skulls, is a gruesome indictment and a sad reminder of the governor’s failure to keep citizens safe, remarked COMRADE EMMANUEL NNADOZIE ONWUBIKO, the National Coordinator of the renowned civil Rights advocacy group.
HURIWA affirmed that the seminarians’ plea for help to their parents and well-wishers to pay for their freedom is a heart-wrenching reminder of the governor’s inability to protect citizens and it’s clear that the governor’s administration is not doing enough. In the same Auchi in Edo state, some siblings kidnapped and held for several months only got released by the terrorists after a N75 million ransom was raised by the citizens resident in Auchi town and paid to the kidnappers in the forests yet the loquacious governor is busy with partisan politics and thus had totally abandoned governance.
The Catholic Diocese of Auchi’s efforts to negotiate with the kidnappers are a testament to the desperation of the situation. However, it is the governor’s responsibility to provide security, and their failure to do so is unacceptable. The primary duty of government is to provide security to lives abd property of citizens but sadly, in Edo state and in many States of the Federation, the elected governor’s abd the president of Nigeria have scandalously failed to combat the unprecedented waves of armed kidnappings by armed gangs and terrorists.
HURIWA says the abduction of seminarians from the Catholic Immaculate Conception Minor Seminary School, Agenebode, in Etsako East Local Government Area of Edo State, is a stark reminder of the governor’s failure to prioritize citizens’ safety. The incident, which resulted in the death of a civil defence corps officer and the abduction of three seminarians, has exposed the Weak security in the state.
In a statement, National Coordinator, Emmanuel N. Onwubiko, HURIWA criticised the Edo State Governor and condemned the governor’s lack of effectiveness in addressing the security situation and urged the relevant authorities to intervene and ensure the safe release of the abducted seminarians. The governor must be held accountable for the security failures in the state, and concrete steps must be taken to prevent further kidnappings.
The Commissioner of Police’s prompt response to deploy tactical teams to apprehend the abductors and rescue the seminarians is commendable even though it was belated and yet to be prove successful. HURIWA however, expresses disappointment concerning the fact that the seminarians are still in captivity shows the governor’s lack of effective leadership in security matters. We condemn the governor’s administration for not doing enough to stop kidnapping in the state.
The people of Edo State are losing trust in the governor’s ability to provide security, and the state’s reputation is suffering because of it.
We demand that the governor take immediate action to prioritize citizens’ safety and security. The people of Edo State deserve better.
