DEPUTY Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, said only a decisive action could stem the spate of kidnapping in the country.
“Kidnapping is not just about the Niger Delta region. It is something that has enveloped the entire country, and my worry is that if it is not tackled now, it will be difficult to tackle,” he said on Sunday in Johannesburg, the South African capital.
Speaking at a dinner organised in his honour by Nigeria’s Consul-General in that country, Ekweremadu said that experience had shown that acts such as terrorism and kidnapping had to be quickly nipped in the bud before they escalate.
He noted: “Statistics have shown that acts like terrorism and kidnapping, if it starts and you don’t deal with them in the first two years of inception, they will be difficult to deal with, because they will take root.
“That is why we have problems in places like Columbia and Mexico. Kidnapping there is worse than what we have in the country. Nigeria needs to be decisive about dealing with the matter.”
He said the Federal Government was not relenting in its efforts in this direction, and that security operatives, telecommunication companies and other stakeholders would soon converge for a symposium to evolve new strategies on tackling the menace.
He said the SIM card registration, which is already under way in the country, would help stem the tide.
Ekweremadu said the amnesty deal for militants was on course with the rehabilitation and training phase under way.
His words: “The government is committed to the training programme going on. I understand that some of them will be sent abroad – those who will want to go to school.
