Datti Baba-Ahmed, the 2023 Labour Party vice-presidential candidate, has demanded that former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai be questioned over his allegations that the Federal Government is paying bandits as part of non-kinetic measures to address insecurity. Speaking on Tuesday, Baba-Ahmed dismissed a rebuttal from the office of the National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu, describing it as inadequate.
“If the office of the NSA treats this matter lightly, then Nuhu Ribadu was never a policeman, nor is he a qualified lawyer. He should not be in that office,” Baba-Ahmed stated, insisting that El-Rufai should be summoned by the police and courts to substantiate his claims.
El-Rufai had alleged that both the Federal Government and Kaduna State were paying monthly allowances and supplying food to bandits under what he termed a “kiss-the-bandits” policy. The claims have sparked controversy, prompting Baba-Ahmed’s call for accountability.
In a related development, Baba-Ahmed linked Nigeria’s current security challenges to the desperation to remove former President Goodluck Jonathan in 2015. Reflecting on his 2011 senatorial campaign alongside the late President Muhammadu Buhari, Baba-Ahmed recounted distancing himself from Buhari after the latter’s controversial remark that Nigerians would be “soaked in blood” if elections were rigged.
“Kaduna, my state, witnessed serious violence. Many houses were burnt. They brought people from neighboring countries to remove Jonathan,” Baba-Ahmed claimed, suggesting that these events contributed to the ongoing insecurity in Nigeria.
The allegations and counterclaims have intensified public discourse on the handling of banditry and insecurity in the country, with calls for transparency and accountability growing louder.
