Family members of the kidnapped Imam and others in Zamfara State have lamented the lack of commitment by the state government towards securing the release of the victims.
A family member of the kidnapped Imam, Alhaji Abubakar Dutsen who spoke with our correspondent in tears said that the state government remains unconcerned because it was not the state government officials that were kidnapped, saying that the state government would have paid any amount in the name of ransom.
“The worse is that the abductors have not mentioned any amount to enable them release the Imam, otherwise we would have struggled to find a way of securing his release.”
According to him, the kidnapped victims had already pencilled the Imam and others for kidnapping since he said that the kidnappers came with their list and did not talk to anybody in the community.
Dutsen narrated that in Kanoma town, there is a police outpost, a unit of mobile policemen and a unit of soldiers, wondering why such operation that lasted for hours could not draw the attention of security agencies in the area.
“From our village to Kanoma town is not up to half a kilometer and it is still questionable why the security operatives there could say that they did not know about the deadly operation in the area
” As I am talking to you now, many people have fled the village for fear of another deadly attack and the village now looks like a graveyard because nobody is there now”.
He appealed to the state government and security agencies to as a matter of urgency reinforce and free the captives from the abductors’ dens if they have not been killed by the armed bandits and notorious abductors.
“I will never trust the state government and security agencies if our people are not released. In fact, I will take any statement of the state government about ending banditry in the state as a mere propaganda that can be thrown into another waste paper basket,” he lamented.