By Laide Akinboade & Johnson Eyiangho, Abuja

President Bola Tinubu has condemned the recent spate of kidnappings and bandit attacks, describing them as disturbing, ungodly and sinister.

Speaking when he received a delegation of Jam’iyyatu Ansaridden, an Islamic movement at the State House, in Abuja on Tuesday, President Tinubu said while security agencies are acting with dispatch to immediately tackle the challenge, all required resources, policies and plans will be rolled out soon for the massive education of Nigerian youths.

The president said education is the antidote to the troubles agitating the nation, adding, “There is no weapon against poverty that is as potent as learning.

“I can assure you that we are here to change the life of our people. We are here to promote peace, stability, and economic prosperity.

“We are dedicated to building a lasting peace with a focus on the comprehensive education of our children. We will get our teachers and their owners involved in an education process that will be relevant to the future of this country. It is important. Knowledge brought me here with your prayers and your support. Without knowledge, there is nothing to generate hope for mankind,” President Tinubu said.

The president also emphasized that it was important to promote updated knowledge through existing islamic learning institutions for youths in Northern Nigeria to speed up development in the region, in Nigeria, and throughout Africa.

“Please embark on special prayers. Embark on proper education for our youths. Kidnapping and banditry are not the way of God. Shedding each other’s blood is bad. And there can be no development without peace. It is only in the area of peace that we can eliminate poverty. We must work for peace in order for our economy to grow better,” the President concluded.

In his remarks, the Jam’iyyatu Ansaridden leader, Sheikh Muhammad Lamine Niass encouraged the President to continue implementing his reform initiatives while affirming that his movement, which is reputed for its promotion of peace and tolerance, would continue to pray for Nigeria’s peaceful development.

Worried by the spate of banditry in Abuja, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, on Tuesday, assured residents of Abuja of safety, urging them not to panic.

According to the minister, he and other security agencies were not sleeping over security challenges in the territory.

Wike spoke before an emergency closed-door meeting with heads of security agencies in the FCT, as well as chairmen of the six area councils.

There has been a public outcry over the death of Nabeeha Al-Kadriyar, who was kidnapped along with 22 others in the Bwari Area of the FCT, and 13-year-old Folasade Ariyo, who was kidnapped alongside with 11 others.

Among them were three of her siblings and their mother at the Sagwari Estate Layout, in Dutse-Alhaji Area of Abuja.

Following the killing of Ariyo and two others, the kidnappers had proceeded to demand N700 million in ransom for the rest of the victims after initially demanding N60 million, leading the father of the late Ariyo, Mr Oladosu Ariyo, to solicit help from the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA).

While addressing the press, Wike said himself and the area council chairmen would join hands to proffer solution to the security challenges in FCT, noting that they owed a duty to make sure Abuja was safe.

 “All of us are aware of the security situation in the Federal Capital Territory, particularly Bwari and some other areas that have witnessed security challenges.

“Our concern is that for the Federal Capital Territory that has virtually every Nigerian, we owe a duty to make sure that this place is safe, to do all we can, and we assure Nigerians who reside here, and that there is no need for panic.

“We are taking every step to make sure that those challenges are things that we must have to resolve.

“So, this meeting is practically to look into such challenges and see how we are able to resolve the problems.

“And that is why we invited all the council chairmen, because they also have a responsibility in their various area councils.

“For the press, it is just for you to know that we are not sleeping, security agencies are also not sleeping.

“We will provide every support that they require in order to allay the fears of the citizens.

“This time around, we will not be happy where area council chairmen abdicate their responsibilities and travel out.

“We have got reports that council chairmen travel anytime, and then if anything happens, of course, they will not call anybody’s name, they will call the FCT Minister.

“We cannot fold our hands, we have invited them to a meeting this afternoon to see how we can resolve the problem,” the Minister said.

Contrary to the FCT minister’s assurance, former Vice-president Atiku Abubakar has said kidnappers and other criminal elements are having the freedom to visit houses and hotels in and around FCT, kidnapping citizens without resistance.

According to Atiku, this is because of the failure of the Federal Government to fulfil its constitutional obligations of protecting lives and property of the citizens.

Reacting to the state of kidnappings and killings in the last couple of days in and around the FCT on his X, formerly Twitter account @AtikuA on Tuesday, Atiku said it is imperative that the authorities address the dire security situation urgently to regain the trust of Nigerians.

He noted that the worsening poverty and hunger in the country is escalating kidnapping and insecurity, particularly in Abuja.

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Presidential Candidate in the Feb. 2023 General Elections said, “The escalating violence and lawlessness in our nation deeply distresses me as bandits and kidnappers continue their reign of terror unchecked.

“Our youths and innocent citizens are being murdered daily. Just last Saturday, we lost Nabeeha to her captors.

“Yesterday [Monday], the tragedy deepened with the murder of more victims, including Folorunsho Ariyo, a 13-year-old student.

“Folorunsho was one of the 10 people kidnapped from Sagwari Estate Layout in Dutse, Bwari Area Council of the FCT, on Jan. 7th, 2024.”Nabeeha, her father, alongside sisters were abducted in the Bwari Area Council of the FCT on Tuesday night (Jan. 9, 2025) but was killed a few days later by the abductors when the family could not meet the deadline to pay the ransom the kidnappers demanded.

The president met with service chiefs and other heads of security agencies at the State House, Abuja last night.

The meeting was attended by: the Chief of Defense Staff, General Christopher Musa; Chief of Army Staff, Lt. General Taoreed Lagbaja; Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ogala; Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Hassan Abubakar; the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun; and heads of some other security outfits.

Although there was no official briefing on the meeting, it was believed it would review the recent security situation in the country, propose ways of taming rising free reign of criminals, including kidnappers and bandits.