The Senator representing Niger East, Senator Mohammed Musa, has given reasons why the Niger state government did not pay ransom to secure the release of abducted Islammiya students.
He said payment of ransom would encourage the trade of kidnap-for-ransom, but failed to provide what option would have been used to secure the release of the children.
The school headmaster, Abubakar Alhassan, explained how they raised N70 Million to secure the release of the children.
He said! “The government contributed, individuals have contributed, the imams, pastors have also contributed. Even I received a call from TB Joshua, he is a Christian, but he contributed,” Alhassan said.
But the Niger Senator has different ideas. He said; “The Niger State Government has made it very categorically clear and one of the policies of the state government His Excellency initiated, there is no payment of ransom for whatever reasons.
“I so much agree with him (Governor Abubakar Bello) because the more you give the ransom, the more the trade will continue because they have turned it into a trade. When they approached the government asking for ransom, the government felt it cannot go against its policy.
“After they escaped, these people opened a new request. They now asked for more of the ransom and the state government insisted that they are not going to pay a kobo.
“These people now complained that they are feeding these children, they have spent so much of their money but the policy of the government is that no ransom will be given.
“They pleaded, the parents pleaded. I don’t know the number of calls Mr Governor was receiving from these parents but I have received so many calls appealing that we should do something about it.”