Kenneth Uwadi Responds to Ben Wuloo Ikara’s Response

Kenneth Uwadi formally responds to Ben Wuloo Ikara’s Response on his earlier submission “Letter to A Nigerian Militant”

Ben Wuloo Ikara in Response to an article I posted: letter to a Nigerian Militant, stated that the article has no real name of the author which is not true as my name and address were clearly written down. one tends to wonder where he got the idea of “no real name”. That someone does not know a person does not mean that the person does not exist.

In Nigeria’s Niger delta region, where large oil and gas resources are located, there are various armed groups threatening stability. These groups range from youth gangs to more organized militias While these armed groups have been involved in kidnapping expatriate energy workers, in recent months some of these groups have begun to target children—both Nigerian and foreigners—in kidnap-for-ransom schemes.There are so many cases of kidnap for ramsom. As a result, a new and alarming dimension has been introduced to the siege on the Niger Delta. Can Mr Ben wuloo tell   us  how this amount to freedom fighting.

Sometime in june  four armed men, wielding AK-47 assault rifles and explosives, traveling in a gold-colored Mazda 626 vehicle with no registration plate number, invaded  Tantua  International Group of Schools—a high profile private school located in Port Harcourt, the turbulent capital of Rivers State. The gunmen seized Master Michael Steward, the three-year-old son of Linda Steward, a member of the Rivers State House of Assembly. According to multiple sources, the captors released Michael in return for 25 million naira in ransom .Maybe this is freedom fighting ,the type my wuloo love to participate.What about the kidnappers of 2 school children that were caught by okada riders that Governor Amechi of Rivers state had to reward the Captors with money and gifts.

same in  June  a three-year-old Briton, Margaret Hill, was taken at gunpoint along Location Road, Mgbuoba in Port Harcourt. She was  convoyed in an Isuzu jeep to Edu Care International School, located on Woji Road in the city. Hill was taken to an unknown destination .On July 8, she was abandoned unhurt near Port Harcourt. The State Security Services denied that any ransom was paid, although local analysts suspect that money exchanged hands.

In another incident in the early hours of July 12, four gunmen kidnapped the three-year-old son of Chief Francis Amadi, the ruler of Iriebe Community in the Oyibo Local Government Area of Rivers State. Armed elements used a brown Volvo to intercept the vehicle transporting Samual Amadi. His captors took him from the vehicle and escaped through Choba Road along the University of Port Harcourt. The kidnappers later contacted Samuel’s father, Chief Amadi, on his cell phone demanding a ransom of N50 million .They demanded that he deposit the ransom into  an account number  at First Inland Bank .

In the case of Briton Margaret Hill and Nigerian Samuel Amadi, the kidnappers were apparently from Ogbakiri, a rural area in Rivers State. The Ogbakiri enclave is administratively located in the Emuoha Local Government Area. The community is the headquarters of the Deebam cult group, and it is riddled with communal and cult violence. The area harbors kidnappers and has also hosted several hostages kidnapped by gangsters inhabiting the area. In March, for example, a 100-strong team of soldiers and other members of the security services raided the village looking for criminals behind a spate of kidnappings .The Deebam cultists in Ogbakiri have been accused as the masterminds behind the kidnapping of Hill . It is not only Deebam, however, that is involved in the kidnap-for-ransom business; there are other secret armed gangs involved such as the Icelanders, Deewell, Greenlanders , the Niger Delta Strike Force and even MEND.

Kidnap-for-ransom has become a widespread business, involving both gang members and government officials. When an individual is kidnapped, the kidnappers either send out emails or make phone calls to local newspaper houses, security officials and politicians; the aim is to let them know that they are holding a hostage and that ransom must be paid. Numerous politicians and security officials have abetted kidnappings because of the profits involved. When the government releases a certain amount of money earmarked for ransom payments, for example, the hostage negotiators keep a portion of the profit for themselves. In most cases, the kidnappers also give the negotiators some of the reward since this helps to entrench the practice.

Overall, the new tactic of kidnapping children—and also family members of high-profile Nigerians—is symptomatic of the corrupt nature in which the government and security services deal with kidnapping gangs. During kidnap-for-ransom schemes, both members of the government and the kidnapping gangs receive a chunk of money, further encouraging the criminal activity. Yet Mr Wuloo deems it fit to call perpetrators of these act “freedom fighters”

It is true that Oil Companies have ravage the Niger Delta extracting oils for the global north while leaving a legacy of pollution, dispossession of land .Many Oil Companies have become very rich as a result of there exploitation of oil in Nigeria and yet the Nigerian people remain poverty stricken, ill and abused as a result of the oil activities. The introduction of Democracy in Nigeria has so far not brought an end to the abuse of the Nigerian people or their land by Oil Companies.
But we know we will achieve little if we chose to fight for our  right through violence. The pen is mightier than the sword.We must lay down  guns and embrace dialogue as a means of solving  issues.This is the message every right thinking Nigerian should preach.

-Kenneth uwadi is the publisher/Editor in Chief of Famous people news magazine

Rate this:

3.2

Build An eBay Business Without Selling A Thing!