THE Chairman of Ikosi-Ejuirin Development Council Area of Lagos State, Chief Ganiyu Akintola has been reportedly kidnapped by gunmen.
The incident occurred at 11.30 p.m. on Thursday when the kidnappers, whose numbers could not be ascertained allegedly forced their way into his living room along Ketu-Ejuirin Road, where he was whisked away in a speedboat.
According to family and witnesses’ accounts, the gunmen, who wore Navy uniforms, invaded the house with sophisticated weapons. They allegedly demanded money from the victim when they entered the house.
“But to our surprise, they forced Papa out in his short knickers and T-shirt into a waiting speedboat, which was less than half a kilometre to the house.”
Akintola’s son, Tunde, who came to Ejirin to commiserate with the family over the loss of the victim’s first daughter, said the abduction of his father was beyond the quest for money by the gunmen.
He Said: ” If they want money or they were sure that there was any money kept at home, they wouldn’t have whisked away our father since money cannot be provided in the lagoon, or wherever they took him to.”
When The Guardian visited the house of the kidnapped chairman yesterday, a detachment of policemen, which included the Rapid Response Squad (RSS) from Alausa and Epe police station were in the area.
The policemen, who declined detailed comments on the matter, said all enquires should be directed to the state police command.
But a senior police officer, who asked not to be named, said the kidnappers had a field day because the community thought they were security operatives who were after fuel barges used by illegal fuel bunkerers.
Naval ratings and other security agents regularly patrol the creeks, which border Okuniraye, Oke-Egun, Epe and Ejirin to check the activities of bunkerers.
This was corroborated by residents, who told The Guardian that they had been noticing the presence of strange persons in the community.
“Because of the activities of bunkerers, who have made our waterways a connecting route to their hideouts, security operatives like the Civil Defence Corps, Naval men and State Security Services (SSS), have been carrying out surveillance in our area. That was why these criminals came; their identity could not be unveiled.”
Akintola’s wife and others were constantly gazing into the route the kidnappers followed, saying in Yoruba language “tani mo se?” meaning whom did I offend.”
A retired permanent secretary with the Lagos State government, Akintola joined politics at the instance of his community members, who believed that he had done well for them.
Two weeks ago, the daughter of a senior officer in the Office of Chief of Staff to Governor Babatunde Raji Fashola was kidnapped in a similar circumstance. A ransom was said to have been paid for her release.
In Abuja yesterday, the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Mr. Mike Mbama Okiro, said most of the cases of kidnapping were stage- managed in order to extort money from the victims or their families.
He narrated how the daughter of a former deputy governor in Imo State arranged her own kidnap to extort money from her parents. Okiro decried the rising wave of what he described as “arrangee kidnapping,” especially among the youths who wanted to get money from their parents.
He said such acts had continued to give the police unnecessary stress in the bid to wipe out crime from the country.
Kenekachi Udeagu, the daughter of Ebere Udeagu, the IGP said connived with Emeka Junior Emeka and Ogechi Ekechukwu alongside others at large to extort the sum of N5 million from her father, under the pretext that she was kidnapped.
The reason behind the plan, one of the suspects said, was the desire of the lady to acquire enough fund with which she hoped to have a nice time back in school.
He disclosed that his friends, who assisted him (kidnapper) in collecting the money from the parents of the lady became greedy and took away the sum of N4.6 million from the ransom paid, leaving him, his friend and the lady with N400,000.
The suspects, the IGP said were rounded up after the lady’s confession.
Meanwhile, the police have denied media reports that their officers on Thursday raided the home of the leader of the Niger Delta Volunteer Force Asari Dokubo.
Speaking on telephone with The Guardian yesterday, Force Public Relations Officer, Mr. Agberebi Akpoebi, Assistant Commissioner of Police, said the police were not involved.
” Let me state categorically that the police were not involved in any raid of Mujaheed Asari- Dokubo’s house.”
The Abuja residence of Asari-Dokubo was reportedly raided last Thursday by some security agents.