Kaduna State is surrounded by several military institutions that no other state has in the country, but in recent months, the state have recorded several security breaches. With the current trend of events, Kaduna is no doubt in search of peace, NORTHERN BUREAU CHIEF, MUHAMMAD SABIU, reports.
Kaduna, once the headquarters of the northern region, has several security institutions. No state in the country can boast of military presence like Kaduna state. In spite of this record, the state has become more like an epicenter of banditry, kidnapping and terrorist attacks in recent months.
For instance, in February, while, receiving the quarterly security report from the commissioner for internal security and home affairs, Samuel Aruwan, the governor of the state, Nasir el-Rufai, painted the worsening security situation this way. He said an average of nine people were kidnapped every day in the state.
He continued that instead of the situation to improve, because of the efforts being put in place by both the federal and state governments, the security challenges confronting the state is on the increase.
El-Rufai lamented that from the statistics obtained by the state government from 2020 till date, the security challenges have doubled. This, according to him, is the stark reality that is confronting the state. But he was adamant that he is not going to relent, but would do whatever is necessary to free the state from miscreants.
Indeed, the recent attacks and the persistent kidnappings and killings in Kaduna metropolis and its environs have continued to elicit reactions from residents of the state, as well as the outsiders.
An activist, who gave his name as Bello Usman, noted that these continuous security breaches signify the failure of governance in all ramifications.
He said: “Once government fails to protect the lives of its citizens, it means something is wrong? Can you stop the citizens from taking up arms?”
According to him, what is baffling is when millions of taxpayers’ funds are being channelled towards the maintenance and provision of peace, yet peace has eluded the state.
He said: “The bizarre act is going on in spite of the presence of military institutions in the state. Ordinarily, the mere presence of these institutions should make criminals fear but that is not so. I wonder where they are getting their strength.”
Synopsis of attacks from 2021 to date
In August 2021, there was a security breach at the Nigeria Defence Academy (NDA) located at Afaka, some kilometres away from the Kaduna metropolis. At the wee hours of day, it was gathered that gunmen invaded the staff quarters of the Academy, killed two military officers and abducted a Major.
Adjacent to the academy is the Federal College of Forestry Mechanisation, Afaka, where about 40 students of the college were abducted by gunmen in March 2021.
Days after the attack on the college in Afaka, at the Greenfield University, located on the Abuja-Kaduna highway, about 100 students were kidnapped and a staff and two students of the school killed. After the attack which occurred in April 2021, the family members of the victims, it was gathered, were able to secure the release of the students after paying over N100 million as ransom.
Another high profile kidnapping occurred along Kachia road, where 120 students of Bethel Baptist School were abducted in July 2021. Like the Greenfield University, parents of the students reportedly paid millions of naira to secure the freedom of their loved ones.
Although the Federal Government announced the proscription of bandits as terrorists in January 2022, the attacks in Kaduna have continued, with high-profile incidents also recorded. For instance, the Kaduna airport was attacked by gunmen in March. Findings revealed that the hoodlums attempted to take over the runaway, which led to the disruption of flight operations for several hours before security personnel drafted to the scene restored order. A security guard was killed during the attack on the airport.
Shortly after the airport attack, a train conveying passengers from Abuja to Kaduna was attacked while it was a short distance from its destination station. Over 300 passengers were on board when the incident occurred on March 28. It’s been weeks after the attack, but several passengers are still missing, while a few others who were abducted by the terrorists, including an 85-year-old woman, are still in captivity.
Feelers coming out revealed that talks are ongoing between the Federal Government and the abductors. One of the family members of the abducted passengers, who pleaded for anonymity, disclosed that “we are still expecting a positive outcome from the discussions”.
Another high profile attack was recorded in April in Birnin Gwari when soldiers were killed by members of the Ansaru insurgent faction, a breakaway group of Boko Haram. A total of 23 soldiers also sustained injuries and are now recuperating at a military hospital in Kaduna.
Recently, bandits have also attacked Unguwar Bulus, a suburb of Kaduna metropolis, and abducted 26 people. When the residents of the area could not raise the N200 million ransom asked for, the abductors killed three people and threatened to kill the remaining captives if their demands were not met within 24 hours. Findings by the Nigerian Tribune revealed that the gunmen have now placed a certain amount on each kidnapped person.
In April, at Kakura community a suburb of Kaduna metropolis, terrorists attacked and killed a community leader. The uproar that followed led to further killings. Within the same period, a customs officer and three of his sons were abducted in Zaria. A disturbed resident of the city told the Nigerian Tribune that terrorists abduct one or two persons on an almost daily basis.
The southern part of the state is not spared from these security breaches. Last month, the state government imposed curfew on two local government areas, following the killing of over 30 people and the burning of 200 houses in these areas.
Checklist of some military institutions in Kaduna
Speaking further on attacks in Kaduna, Usman, the activist, noted that it is not pleasing that such happenings are taking place despite the military institutions Kaduna is blessed with.
The activist, who is a retired military officer, also told the Nigerian Tribune that apart from the military institutions, the state also has the highest concentration of retired service officers and retired generals.
A checklist of military and security institutions carried out by the Nigerian Tribune revealed the following: The Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA), headquarters of one Mechanised Division Nigeria Army, Nigeria Army School of Military Police, Armed Forces Command and Staff College, Nigeria Air Force, Base, Air Force Institute of Technology, Army Training Depot, Nigeria Military School, Defence Industries Corporation (DICON), Nigeria Army School of Artillery, Nigeria Navy School of Armant Technology, Police College, Nigeria Air Force Training Command, Command Engineering Depot, State Security Service Training Academy, Bostel Training College, Nigerian Army School of Infantry, and Army Operations Base in Southern Kaduna
However, with all these institutions, a resident of Sabon Tasha, Bulus Matthew, gave a pathetic scenario on how many families now sleep with one eye closed in Kaduna. He told the Nigerian Tribune that most of the families around Sabon Tasha, Unguwar Bulus, Sabon GRA, Karji, among others, no longer sleep at home because of the menace of kidnappers and criminals.
According to him, terrorists have turned their areas into a haven where many residents are kidnapped in exchange for ransom.
He said the residents sometimes leave their homes in the evening and return the following day for fear of night invasions by gunmen.
“So, the best bet is for us to leave to a neighbouring area once it is 6pm and return to our houses the following day at 6am,” he said.
Meanwhile, the state Commissioner for Internal Security and Home Affairs, Samuel Aruwan, has assured residents that the governments at all levels are making efforts to address the situation, adding that “I don’t sleep just to ensure that the state is safe.”