Niger governor vows not to pay any ransom to kidnappers of Kagara students and staff members

The governor of Niger state, Abubakar Sani-Bello, has insisted that his government will not pay any ransom to kidnappers to release the abducted students and staff members of Government Science College in Kagara.

Governor Bello said this on Wednesday, February 17, while giving a press briefing to journalists on the situation report of the latest ugly development.

Governor Abubakar Sani-Bello. (Photo: @abusbello)

Similarly, a number of travellers had been abducted by suspected bandits in Niger state.

A video of the travellers begging the government to secure their freedom was released by a group of criminals on Tuesday, February 16.The travellers were kidnapped on Sunday, February 14, on a highway, with their abductors reportedly demanding a whopping sum of N500 million for their release.

Meanwhile, a former Kaduna senator, Shehu Sani, expressed pain over the abduction of another set of students in the north.

Sani said the experience of the Kankara kidnap had not taught both state governments and the police any lesson.

He said at the moment, parents are pulling out their children from the school after bandits abducted their classmates.

The former lawmaker tweeted:

"Parents are just pulling out their children from the Govt Science College Kagara, the scene of the early morning invasion by bandits. One student is confirmed killed.

"The whereabouts and numbers of those abducted remains http://unknown.No lessons learnt from Kankara.
"

Emerging reports indicate that the federal government is already making frantic efforts to rescue the students of the Government Science College, Kagara, who were abducted by bandits.

A presidential aide, Bashir Ahmad, disclosed that a federal government security delegation has already arrived in Minna, Niger state to coordinate the rescue operation.

The Niger state government has called a security meeting over the abductions. Photo: @GovNiger

Ahmad on Wednesday, February 17, disclosed via Twitter that some officials on the government’s security delegation include: the National Security Adviser (NSA), the inspector general of police, lnterior, information and police affairs ministers among others.