Over 500 women organisations in Nigeria, united under the aegis of Womanifesto, have condemned the recent wave of insecurity and kidnapping in Nigeria, with a call to the National Assembly to end its holiday.
The coalition, in a statement on Sunday, said it finds it unimaginable that the National Assembly extended its holiday after a 3-week Christmas and New Year recess, amid the recent security crises in the country.
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This action, it argued, reeks of non-chalance and lack of empathy by those elected to represent the interest of Nigerians.
“As enshrined in Section 14(2b) of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria, the welfare and security of the citizens shall be the primary purpose of the government. The Constitution also guarantees the right to life, liberty, and personal security of every Nigerian citizen.
“The safety and security of Nigerian citizens, especially women and children, which should be the top priority of the government, has been rigorously threatened for years.
“It has now come to a climax where citizens are being kidnapped from their homes in broad daylight,” the coalition decried in the statement signed by its Co-convener, Dr Abiola Akiyode-Afolabi.
The women went on: “Nigerians have felt the brunt of this crisis and have had to crowdfund ransoms payable to criminals.
“Despite this, victims of kidnappings are still being murdered by criminals, leaving the nation in a dire state of distress.
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“The Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project, ACLED, reveals that over 380 people were kidnapped in Nigeria between December 1, 2023 and January 3, 2024.
“The number of reported kidnapped persons in Nigeria between June 2022 and July 2023 increased to 3,620 an analysis of data from SBM Intelligence reveals.
“Additionally, government statistics for Abuja show 40 kidnapping cases involving 236 victims between January 2021 and June 2023.
“We, however, believe that the exact number of people kidnapped in Nigeria in 2024 may be higher.”
Womanifesto, therefore, called on the National Assembly to resume sessions, describing its continued holiday as grossly unacceptable.
While it also applauded recent efforts by security agencies in rescuing some of the kidnapped victims, it demanded that the government takes concrete and anticipatory steps to towards ensuring the safety of its citizens, rather than reactionary measures.
