ABUJA
Presdient Bola Ahmed Tinubu has ordered a 24-hour security cordon around forests in Kwara, Kebbi and Niger states, to link up with the boots on the ground, following a surge in kidnappings and terrorist activities.
His directive came as over 20 persons, including a pregnant woman, nursing mothers and children, were abducted Monday evening in a fresh attack on Isapa, a community just five kilometres from Eruku, in Kwara State.
Special Adviser to the President on Media and Public Communication, Sunday Dare, who disclosed this via a post on his X handle yesterday, said the President ordered the Nigerian Air Force to intensify aerial surveillance over the deepest stretches of the forests where criminals were believed to be hiding.
The operation, he noted, would run round the clock, with air assets maintaining constant communication and coordination with ground troops.
Dare explained that the directive would be in all axis where joint operations are expected to facilitate the rescue of kidnapped victims.
‘’Communities in the affected regions have also been urged to provide timely intelligence on suspicious movements to aid security forces in restoring safety,’’ Dare added.
Recall that there is an increased wave of brazen kidnappings and violent raids across Kwara, Kebbi, and Niger states, a development that has exposed the alarming reach of criminal networks exploiting remote forests and ungoverned terrain.
Meanwhile, the Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, disclosed that security agencies were fully aware of the identities and locations of the bandit groups responsible for recent mass abductions, including the attack on St Mary’s Catholic School, Papiri, in Niger State.
Onanuga, who spoke in an interview on ARISE News‘s programme, Prime Time, said though security operatives had the necessary intelligence, their operations were often constrained by the risk of collateral damage to civilians being held by the bandits.
“The security people, they know all the bandits that are operating in that axis. They know them. They know where they operate,” he said.
He said the government could not simply launch airstrikes on the identified enclaves, noting “our people are living around where they operate, so you can’t just go there.
‘’They need to be very careful that in the course of chasing these bandits, they don’t go and bomb innocent Nigerians.’’
Recalling recalled a past incident in Borno State where the military mistakenly struck civilians, Onanuga said: “Some years ago in Borno State, when the military thought they had the right satellite connection, they bombed the wrong people. They must avoid that kind of mistake.’’
He added that uncertainty persists about the exact number of abducted students because neither the school nor the Niger State chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, had provided complete records. “As of now, the authorities are in the dark as to how many people are really missing. You said students are missing — let us have their names. Let us know what we are looking for,” he said.
Onanuga also claimed that the school principal had “disappeared”, complicating the verification process. “For the security, they found it very strange that they are not cooperating. What is the agenda?” he queried..
Onanuga also said security agencies deployed precision intelligence and coordinated engagement to secure the release of 38 abducted worshippers in Eruku, Kwara State. According to him, “the DSS and military operatives were deeply involved in the rescue of the 38 worshippers in Eruku.
“They made contact with the bandits to secure the release of the captives. Our security agencies have systems for tracking these criminals, which allow them to monitor developments in real time.
“They reached out to the kidnappers and demanded the release of the victims, and the bandits complied, fully aware of the consequences of defying government directives.”
He described the non-kinetic approach as deliberate, noting that storming the kidnappers’ hideout would have endangered the victims, who were often used as human shields.
He said: “The priority was to ensure that all abductees were safely reunited with their families without triggering avoidable casualties.”
