Zamfara State Governor, Dauda Lawal, on Thursday revealed that he refused to pay a N300 million ransom when his brothers were kidnapped in 2019, insisting that negotiating with criminals only encourages more abductions.
Speaking at the ARISE News and THISDAY Townhall Conference in Abuja, Lawal said he took a hard stance against the kidnappers despite the personal cost.
“My own brothers were kidnapped in 2019, and these criminals were demanding at the time about 300 million. And I said, look, I’m not going to pay a dime. If you like, go and kill them,” the governor said.
He said the kidnappers eventually released his brothers after three months in captivity without receiving any ransom payment.
“By the time we continue to pay ransom to these people, we are encouraging them to be kidnapping people more and more,” he said, adding that he believed criminals would think twice about abducting people if ransom payments stopped.
Lawal stressed that his position on ransom payments had not changed.
“I will not negotiate, and I will not pay ransom to any criminal, no matter what happens,”he declared.
