Tinubu pulls the plug on ransom payments

Nigeria will no longer pay ransom to armed gangs that have plagued the country with kidnapping and extortion, President Bola Tinubu has noted. Voice of America reports that he made the statement as activists commemorated the 10th anniversary of the kidnapping of 276 schoolgirls from the town of Chibok. Acknowledging that ‘legitimate concerns’ over kidnappings persist, Tinubu said Nigeria must address the root causes of poverty, inequality, and a lack of opportunity if it hoped to eradicate the threat posed by criminal gangs. The President said ransom payments to gangs only encouraged gangs to commit more crimes and said ‘the extortion racket must be squeezed out of existence’. In 2022, Tinubu's predecessor, Muhammadu Buhari, tried to criminalise ransom payments to kidnappers, but the decision was met with resistance from activists and the families of victims.