Nigeria Newspapers, April 26: Senate stunned as Marafa reveals 3,000 held captive by kidnappers in Zamfara, summons IGP

The major headlines in mainstream newspapers today, Friday, April 26 are focused on the Senate’s summon of the IGP over the insecurity in the North, especially Zamfara; the president’s assurance that his administration is still working to free Leah Sharibu and the Chibok girls still in Boko Haram captivity; critical reactions to the president’s 10-day trip to the UK; and the IGP’s revelation on why some policemen engage in extra-judicial killings.

We kick off the review with The Nation, which reports that senators reviewed the security situation on Thursday, April 25, submitting that people in many parts of the country, especially the North, were at the mercy of hoodlums.

The lawmakers were contributing to a motion on “Senseless killing of a Briton and the abduction of three others in a holiday resort in Kaduna State by armed bandits”, sponsored by Senator Shehu Sani and 108 others.

They said banditry and kidnapping were now the order of the day, with the rich and the poor falling prey.

Senator Kabiru Marafa, representing Zamfara Central, painted a grim picture of happenings in his state, which is fast becoming the epicenter of banditry. The lawmaker disclosed that over 3,000 persons were in bandits’ dens.

The Senate, stunned by Marafa’s revelation, summoned the acting inspector-general of police, Mohammed Adamu, to brief it next week on measures being taken to address the problems.

Front page of The Nation, Friday, April 26
Source: UGC

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Mirroring the previous publication, The Guardian reports that the Senate on Thursday resolved to invite acting IGP Mohammed Adamu to a meeting, following a marathon debate on the insecurity in the country, particularly the rising cases of kidnapping.

The publication reports that Senator Shehu Sani (Kaduna Central) and 107 other senators had sponsored a motion, pointing out that many local government areas in Niger, Katsina, Zamfara, Sokoto, Borno and Yobe states as well as other key areas in the northern part of the country are under siege by kidnappers and other criminal elements.

During the over three hours debate, it was revealed that over 3,000 Nigerians are currently being held in captivity by kidnappers in Zamfara and other states in the North.

The Senate was equally informed that foreign firms have adopted the option of making provisions for ransom in their annual budgets.

No specific date has yet been fixed for the IGP’s appearance.

Front page of The Guardian, Friday, April 26
Source: UGC

On to a different matter, ThisDay reports that President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday said his government has not given up on liberating Leah Sharibu and the remaining 112 Chibok schoolgirls still in Boko Haram captivity.

The president made the comment during his visit to Maiduguri, the Borno state capital.

He said: “We won’t give up on them. As I have always said, as a Nigerian and as president, I assure all that we will do the needful to ensure that all Nigerians, whose loved ones are in the hands of the Boko Haram terrorists, regain their freedom.”

Buhari assured the people of the state that his administration was doing everything possible to ensure that all their loved ones in the hands of the Boko Haram terrorists regained their freedom.

The president subsequently left the country for the United Kingdom on a 10-day private visit.

Front page of ThisDay, Friday, April 26
Source: UGC

Maintaining focus on the president, Punch reports that Buhari has been urged by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP), to disclose his reason for embarking on a 10-day trip to the UK.

According to the PDP and CUPP, it was wrong for the president to embark on a journey without telling Nigerians what he would do while away.

Their reactions followed a statement from the presidency that the president would travel to the UK on Thursday on a “private visit” and would be away till May 5.

In his absence, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo presided over Thursday’s Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting where the sum of N52bn was approved for the electronic monitoring of Nigeria’s borders with neighbouring countries.

Front page of Punch, Friday, April 26
Source: UGC

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Rounding off the review, Vanguard reports that acting IGP Mohammed Adamu attributed the increasing cases of misuse of firearms and extra-judicial killings by police personnel to work-related stresses and emotional conditions.

To tackle the issue, Adamu ordered an immediate end to the current 12-hour, two-shift work structure in the Nigeria Police Force, and reversal to the traditional eight-hour, three-shift standard.

The police boss stated this on the same day he was summoned by the Senate to explain what is being done to put an end to the banditry and kidnapping across the country.

A former commissioner of police for Lagos state, Alhaji Abubakar Tsav, however, said lack of supervision and wickedness were responsible for extra-judicial killings by the police.

Front page of Vanguard, Friday, April 26
Source: UGC

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