Buhari orders improved response to kidnapping, bandit attacks

President Muhammadu Buhari has called on security agencies and
communities under threats of bandits’ attacks and kidnappings to be
more vigilant and alert in the light of the latest incidents in
Enugu, Zamfara, Adamawa, Katsina and Kaduna States.

Reacting to the recent reports of heightened acts of violence
and kidnappings after a period of relative inactivity, the
President observed that “in view of the unpredictability of the
security situation, our security forces and the communities
affected should be ever more alert because these murderous and
remorseless criminals would take advantage of your complacency and
strike again.”

The President, in a statement by the Senior Special Assistant on
Media and publicity, Malam Garba Shehu, said “the bandits should
under no circumstances be allowed to hold the country to ransom on
account of security loopholes which they seek to exploit to strike
at their victims.

“The criminals always look for loopholes in our security system
in order to remain in business and active, but we shouldn’t give
them the space to achieve this diabolical objective by pre-empting
them.”

President Buhari added that “complacency is a hidden or
unnoticed enemy that we shouldn’t take for granted, because doing
so could weaken our strategies.”

The President, however, noted that the affected communities also
have a responsibility to help the security agencies with the
critically important human intelligence in order to stop the
bandits in their tracks.

He said “the bandits maintain networks of informants among the
communities they attack”, adding that “by identifying and reporting
these informants to the authorities, it would be by far easier to
foil the bandits before they reach their intended targets.”

Commending the security agencies for their dedication and
sacrifices, President Buhari directed them to “redouble their
efforts and make life uncomfortable for the bandits.”

“You should spare no effort in breaking the backbone of these
savage mass killers and don’t hesitate to attack them with
merciless intensity until they are crushed and ultimately
defeated”, the President said.