Mixed reactions have trailed the Oyo Assembly Speaker’s call for the state government not to negotiate with the Oriire abductors.
The respondents expressed their opinions in separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Ibadan on Saturday.
NAN recalls that the Speaker, Mr Adebo Ogundoyin, on Wednesday, took a firm, non-negotiable stance against the bandits, calling for stronger rescue operations.
He warned that negotiations could embolden criminal elements, encourage further attacks, send the wrong signal and potentially strengthen criminal networks in the state.
Ogundoyin acknowledged the frustration, anxiety and impatience of families whose loved ones remained in captivity, but called for continued support of rescue efforts by security agencies and the state government.
According to him, the focus should remain on sustained security operations, intelligence gathering and coordinated rescue missions aimed at securing the safe release of all victims.
The bandits had reportedly demanded N1 billion, two buses, and the release of their colleagues in custody, among other demands.
However, a lawyer and political analyst, Mr Oluwatobi Fatoki, warned that negotiating with kidnappers would strengthen criminal networks and undermine Nigeria’s sovereignty.
Fatoki, a former spokesperson of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Ibadan branch, described the demands as a slap on the face of the nation.
“It is a slap on the face of the nation that is sovereign for kidnappers to be listing their demands to a government whose core constitutional responsibility is security and welfare of citizens,” Fatoki said.
He argued that paying ransom creates more victims.
“When you negotiate with kidnappers and heed their call, you allow them to do more. All the money they get through this crime, they reinvest into it. That is not the solution,” he stated.
Fatoki said the government must reassert control over security.
According to him, if the government can take charge of security architecture and combat banditry, kidnapping and terrorism headlong, there will be peace.
He, however, called for a return to indigenous security practices, saying that traditional methods have proven effective in communities.
“Nigeria is a secular state with Christians, Muslims and traditionalists; and originally, we are rooted in traditional practice. We have seen different traditional means of arresting armed robbers.
“Recently in Ondo State, some people, likely bandits, were arrested through traditional means; they slept off with their ammunition,” he noted.
The legal practitioner urged the government to look for and invest in genuine core traditional practitioners rather than giving N1 billion to abductors to reinvest.
“Let us turn to traditionalists who can use confirmed charms to deter crime, arrest offenders and set people free,” he said.
He added that unconventional security innovations are used globally.
“We have seen wizardry in international countries and innovations they have used for security. We should stop using witchcraft to do evil but use it to bring solutions and make society safer for all,” Fatoki said.
Meanwhile, Prof. Olawale Albert of the Peace and Strategic Studies at the University of Ibadan, said that negotiations should not be ruled out, particularly when lives were at stake.
He said the immediate priority should be the safe return of the abducted students and teachers, noting that a purely force-based approach could result in casualties.
He underscored the need for professionals to handle the negotiations so that they could get the victims to safety.
According to him, professional security management often combines both kinetic and non-kinetic approaches.
“The first thing for us to do now is to get those children into safety, and you cannot get them into safety using kinetic methods, because there may be very expensive collateral damage.
“When the children and their teachers are out, then other options can be explored in dealing with the kidnappers,” he said.
Also, Prof. Nelson Fashina, the National Deputy Director of the Nigeria Forest Security Service (NFSS), said the country was facing a broader security crisis requiring urgent intervention.
Fashina described existing government approaches as insufficient and called for stronger collaboration with community-based security structures.
He, however, did not directly endorse or oppose negotiations, but stressed the need for more effective responses to insecurity.
The Oyo State Secretary of the Labour Party, Mr Fatai Ojetunde, described the Speaker’s position as one probably influenced by personal distance from the situation.
According to Ojetunde, families of the victims would naturally support every legitimate effort, including negotiations, to secure the release of their loved ones.
“Nigerians generally are plagued with selfish interests, and people only act when issues concern them.
“Families of the victims would want everything done for the rescue of their loved ones, including negotiation,” he said.
Ojetunde, however, noted that the ransom reportedly demanded by the kidnappers appeared excessive and might be difficult for any state government to meet.
(NAN)
