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Nigerian Victims Pay N1 Billion in Ransoms as Kidnapping Incidents Soar

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N1.048 billion has been paid in ransoms to kidnappers across Nigeria between July 2023 and June 2024, according to a new report by SBM Intelligence titled “Grim Reaping.”

The report sheds light on the escalating kidnapping crisis in Nigeria, where economic pressures and insecurity have driven more individuals toward criminal activities, specifically abductions for ransom.

The report reveals that kidnappers demanded a total of N10.99 billion from their victims over the past year, but only about 9.5% of this amount was paid.

Despite paying over a billion naira in ransoms, the reality remains bleak as kidnapping incidents continue to rise.

During the 12 months, at least 7,568 people were abducted in 1,130 incidents nationwide. The states of Zamfara, Kaduna, and Katsina have been the hardest hit, reporting the highest number of both incidents and victims.

Zamfara recorded 132 kidnapping incidents with 1,639 victims, Kaduna had 113 incidents involving 1,113 victims, and Katsina reported 119 incidents with 887 victims.

More troubling still is the rising lethality of these abductions. The report states that kidnapping incidents now result in fatalities with greater frequency, leading to the deaths of 1,056 civilians over the past year. The growing violence has compounded the national sense of insecurity.

The report also highlights that the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Lagos, and Kaduna recorded the highest ransom demands.

Also, the Southeast leads the amounts paid and the number of successful ransom collections.

Interestingly, kidnappers have increasingly sought in-kind payments, which vary regionally. In the southern parts of the country, demands often include food, drinks, and cigarettes.

In the northern regions, motorcycles have become a preferred payment option. This shift reflects the deepening poverty and desperation driving criminality across the country.

Women are being targeted at a higher rate than men, the report notes, particularly in the northern states.

The number of kidnapping incidents in the North has spiked dramatically, far surpassing the combined totals of the previous two years. This sharp escalation indicates that the situation is spiraling out of control.

Economic hardship is also exacerbating the security situation. Many farmers in northern Nigeria are forced to pay ransoms just to access their farmlands. According to the report, over 1,356 farmers have been kidnapped across the country since 2020, while others have been required to pay “protection fees” to harvest their crops.

These payments, often amounting to N100,000 per farmer, have further worsened the country’s food security crisis. Food inflation has soared to 40%, the highest rate in nearly 30 years.

Nigeria’s kidnapping crisis has become an unrelenting threat, and without swift, coordinated efforts from the government to restore security and create economic opportunities, the situation is likely to continue deteriorating.

The report shows ransom payments are only a symptom of the wider economic malaise and insecurity gripping the nation.

Is the CEO and Founder of Investors King Limited. He is a seasoned foreign exchange research analyst and a published author on Yahoo Finance, Business Insider, Nasdaq, Entrepreneur.com, Investorplace, and other prominent platforms. With over two decades of experience in global financial markets, Olukoya is well-recognized in the industry.

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Education

FG Abolishes 18-Year Age Benchmark For Admission Into Tertiary Institutions

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The new Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa, has abolished the controversial 18-year admission benchmark for tertiary institutions in the country.

This is coming as the minister indicated interest in reviewing the nation’s education policy.

However, Alausa stated that there would be no reversal of the Federal Government’s decision to void over 22,700-degree certificates obtained by Nigerians from some “fake” universities in neighbouring Togo and the Benin Republic.

Alausa spoke on Tuesday at his inaugural ministerial press conference in Abuja.

He stated that practical education will help to address the unemployment situation in Nigeria, as tertiary institutions will not continue to churn out graduates every year without providing jobs for them.

He disclosed that the Federal Government will collaborate with private sector operators to train students in order to discover and unleash their potential.

Alausa added that universities of agriculture will be empowered to adopt commercial farming practices to combat food insecurity.

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Outrage in Equatorial Guinea: Government Restricts WhatsApp Multimedia Sharing Amid Scandal

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There is outrage in Equatorial Guinea as the government restricted its citizens from downloading and sharing multimedia files using mobile data on WhatsApp.

This decision followed the guidelines that the country’s government gave to telecommunications operators when it urged them to implement measures to restrict access to inappropriate content.

The country’s Director General, National Financial Investigation Agency, Baltasar Engonga, has been involved in a sex scandal involving the wives of notable people in the nation.

The scandal emerged in the course of a fraud investigation against the 54-year-old economist which resulted in the search of his house and office on impromptu notice by ANIF officials who came across several CDs that later revealed his sexcapades with different married women.

It was reported that the over 400 videos include encounters with high-profile individuals, such as his brother’s wife, his cousin, the sister of the President of Equatorial Guinea, the Director General of Police’s wife, and about 20 of the country’s ministers’ wives, among others.

The footage, discovered in his office, was said to have been recorded with consent and has since been leaked online, causing a media uproar.

But, in a new development on Tuesday, it was reported that the citizens have been lamenting their inability to share photos, videos, and audio when using a mobile data connection, leading users to rely exclusively on WiFi networks to share such content.

Sources revealed that the restrictions have been affecting business and academic activities in the country.

Citizens wonder why the actions of a few individuals would result into holding thousands of other innocent ones hostage.

Earlier, the Vice President of Equatorial Guinea, Teddy Nguema, announced plans to install surveillance cameras in all state body offices.

This sweeping measure is part of an ongoing effort to ensure strict adherence to public service laws and combat misconduct among officials.

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NCC Confiscates ₦23 Million Worth of Pirated Books During Bookstores Raid In Uyo

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The Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) on Saturday, November 2, confiscated ₦23.1 million in pirated books from local shops, including Academic Needs and Zion Bookshop during a raid in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.

The raid was by the Deputy Director of Operations, Mr Macfoy Akachukwu, representing the NCC Director General, Dr. John Asein.

Akachukwu, who stated that the raid was a significant operation to combat the rampant sale of pirated books, listed the books seized during the raid to include: Basic Civic Education by Dr Merry Ukaegbu, Spectrum New Further Mathematics by T.R. Moses and Essential Christian Religious Study for Senior Secondary Schools by Orovwuje B.O and Okolie E.U.

Other books included Macmillan Brilliant English for Junior Secondary Schools by Wale Ossianwo, New General Basic Science for Junior Secondary Schools by S. Ajayi, New Oxford Secondary English Course for Secondary Schools by Ayo Banjo and New Concept Mathematics for Senior Secondary Schools by H.N. Odogwu among others.

Major publishers affected by the raid included Evans, UPL, Lantern, Longman, TONAD, and Pearson among others.

According to Asein, the operation is important as it was part of a nationwide initiative to protect authors’ rights.

“What we have done is part of the commissions mandate to protect and promote the rights of authors and other genuine investors in the copyright book industry,” he stated.

He reaffirmed that the NCC is committed to “eliminating the sale of pirated works and to establish a robust copyright framework in Nigeria”.

Asein emphasized that authors deserve to benefit from their creative work and not run into financial losses because of piracy.

“It is our duty to ensure that authors get rewards for their creative work. I have under my watch, zero tolerance for piracy and infringement of Copyright Laws,” Asein said.

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