FG Didn’t Pay Ransom for Kebbi and Niger Kidnap Victims — Senate Spokesman, Adaramodu
Senate spokesman Yemi Adaramodu has insisted that the Federal Government did not pay ransom for the release of individuals recently abducted in Kebbi and Niger States.
Speaking on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief on Friday, Adaramodu addressed growing public concern over the lack of visible evidence showing clashes between security forces and the kidnappers during the rescue operations.
“From our side at the National Assembly, we believe the Federal Government did not pay any ransom to anybody,” he said.
He noted that engagements with abductors can take different forms, either “through force or persuasion”, and that not all security operations are meant to be publicly visible.
Adaramodu cautioned against assuming that no military action occurred simply because there were no images or reports of arrests.
“If you have not seen the corpses of abductors or them being handcuffed from the forest, that does not mean there was no serious exchange of battle,” he stated, adding that bandits often flee when confronted with superior firepower.
He stressed that security agencies are under no obligation to disclose the details of their operations.
“The ways and manners of the military, how they rescue victims, cannot and will not be made public,” he said. “They will not tell us how many bullets they shot or how many guns they lost.”
According to him, the priority for both the Senate and the Federal Government is the safe return of victims, not the publication of tactical breakdowns.
“What we know is that they went, they brought back those who were ferried into the forest, and that is what matters,” he said.
