June 20, (THEWILL)- Brazen acts of criminality have become front-page news in Nigeria. There is not a single day that passes without the news of violent attacks, kidnap or killings dominating the headlines of major newspapers in the country.
Kidnapping poses a serious challenge to security agencies and the leadership of the country. The menace has engendered a lucrative and booming industry, otherwise known as the “Kidnap-for-Ransom” enterprise. Till date, a total of 769 secondary school pupils and students of tertiary institutions have been abducted from boarding schools and other educational facilities across northern Nigeria in at least five separate incidents since December 2020.
The spate of kidnappings and violent acts have enough spread such that the heightened fear of insecurity in the entire country has reared its ugly head in the domestic football league with the alleged kidnapping of Stanley Eguma, the manager of Rivers United FC.
The coach was reportedly kidnapped last Tuesday by unknown gunmen. In the typical fashion of the business, reports monitored by THEWILL hold that the kidnappers have demanded a ransom of N10 million.
Rivers United, the Rivers State-owned Nigerian Professional Football League (NPFL) outfit, were involved in a Sunday fixture against Adamawa United in Gombe, which the coach attended with his charges and which they lost by 2-0 after a Fabian Nworie 39th minute own goal.
The kidnappers, according to sources close to the team, must have accosted the coach and abducted him around Enugu on his way to Port Harcourt. No official statement has been issued by the Rivers State Government, regarding his whereabouts.
This is the second time that a high-profile coach of the top flight Nigerian football club has been kidnapped in recent times. THEWILL recalls that Abdulahi Biffo, coach of Kwara United FC spent about a month in the kidnappers’ den in 2019 after he was seized on Monday, January 7 in the Malumfashi Local Government Area of Katsina State. Two of the four occupants of the vehicle that conveyed them, including the driver, lost their lives in a shootout that ensued when security agents attempted to apprehend the kidnappers, who were armed.
The coach revealed that the second survivor was a man identified as Aminu Lawal, a known retired justice of northern extraction. Biffo’s abduction was an unexpected development, which forced the League Management Company (LMC) to postpone Kwara United’s third NPFL matchday fixture against Rivers United at the time. The coach was not released until a ransom of N15 million was paid to his abductors.
Kidnapping has continued unabated across the country with scarcely any sort of deterrence to keep the perpetrators in check. The entire squad of Adamawa United FC was fortunate to have escaped a similar fate on the Benin-Ore Road in February 2021.
Unknown gunmen had attacked the NPFL side on Friday, February 19 when the players were on their way to Lagos for a game against MFM FC on Matchday 11. The driver of the vehicle conveying them, Kabiru Mohammed, was abducted by the criminals who also stole valuable objects from the players and coaches. A ransom of N50 million was demanded for the release of the driver who was freed after six days and the payment of N1 million.
In November last year, THEWILL reported the second kidnapping of Christian Obodo, which occurred on Refinery Road in Effurun, Uvwie Council Area of Delta State at about 5pm on Sunday, November 16. He was released after he paid an undisclosed sum. It was reminiscent of Obodo’s first experience in the hands of kidnappers in 2012 when he was abducted on his way to church. The day after that abduction, policemen were able to track his abductors to Isoko, just outside Warri. There, they found the player and arrested some suspects.
Before that, in March 2020, two football players, Enyimba FC midfielder Ekundayo Ojo and Abia Comet’s Benjamin Iluyomade were kidnapped on Sunday, March 22, on the Benin-Owo Expressway as they journeyed to Akure, following the suspension of the Nigeria Professional Football League amid concerns over the global COVID-19 pandemic. Fortunately, they were released three days later, although it was not known if a ransom was paid.
THEWILL recalls cases involving the relatives of footballers who were kidnapped for ransom. It took the payment of a ransom of $138,000 (about N56m) in two instalments to secure the release of Samuel Kalu’s mother, Ozuruonye Juliet Kalu, from the clutches of kidnappers in February 2019.
Also John Mikel Obi’s father, Michael Obi, was a victim of two kidnappings. The first incident occurred in 2011 after which he was released. In June 2018, in what can only be described as a nightmare, the senior Obi was kidnapped for the second time in seven years.
The footballer and captain of the Super Eagles received the news moments before the Super Eagles faced Argentina in the group stages of the 2018 World Cup held I Russia. He bravely kept the incident from his teammates and his father was rescued by the Enugu State Police after a gun battle with the kidnappers.
Beyond sports, the pool of potential victims has greatly expanded and news reports illustrate that most of the victims are often poor civil servants, sometimes kidnapped indiscriminately. This is a departure from the targeted kidnappings of wealthy people, who often struggle to pay ransoms quickly because of their relative poverty, and such victims are much more likely to be killed.
A consulting firm, SB Morgen, reported that between 2011 and 2020, over $18 million (N7,352,460,000) had been paid in ransom. This accelerated in the latter portion of that period, a time between 2016 and 2020, when about $11 million (N4,493,170,000) was paid out. It clearly highlights the profitability of the enterprise and frighteningly demonstrates why there is an urgent need to curtail the ease with which the kidnappers operate.
That need is dire at the moment because in many parts of the country, the lure to take up kidnapping is gaining grounds, especially for a growing unemployed population. The economic difficulties in a recessed economy and the twin evils of the impact of the coronavirus and the fall in oil prices, which has led to redundancies, putting more people out of work, can only serve to worsen the dangers.
The sporting community will not be spared as it exists within the system and carries with it a special attraction due to the juicy sums of money attached to almost every level of the game. It is hoped that within all sports, there will be greater attention to security, less exposure to risks and no report of casualties as the situation shows no clear signs of improving.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
