The National Bureau of Statistics has revealed that Nigerians paid a total of N2.23tn as ransom over the 12-month period between May 2023 and April 2024.
This sum was paid by households affected by kidnapping incidents, highlighting the growing threat posed by criminal activities in the country.
According to the NBS’s latest Crime Experience and Security Perception Survey report, an estimated 51.89 million crime incidents were recorded across Nigerian households in the reference period.
The survey showed that the North-West region had the highest incidence of crime, with 14.4 million cases reported, and followed by the North-Central region with 8.8 million incidents.
In contrast, the South-East region reported the least crime, with 6.18 million incidents.
States mobilise
The NBS statistics come as The PUNCH learnt several northern states have resorted to vigilante squads and private security personnel to complement the Federal Government’s effort in the fight against banditry, terrorism and kidnapping.
The Kano State Government recruited no fewer than 2,500 security personnel to enhance security across the state.
The security personnel were trained at the state’s Corporate Security Training Institute located in Gabasawa, headquarters of Gabasawa Local Government Area of the state.
A state official, who spoke to The PUNCH on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak on the matter, said the initiative was aimed at boosting job opportunities for youth and strengthening the state’s security architecture.
“The present administration under the leadership of Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf recruited no fewer than 2,500 private security personnel recently as part of efforts to enhance security in the state,” he said.
According to him, the trained personnel were deployed to ministries, departments and agencies to bolster existing security structures and enhance overall safety.
“The initiative is in fulfillment of one of the present administration’s campaign promises of providing job opportunities for the youths and strengthening the security architecture of the state as revealed in a statement issued by the Director General, Media and Publicity to the governor, Sanusi Dawakin Tofa, after commencement of the training,” the official said.
In January, Governor Dauda Lawal of Zamfara State unveiled the 3969 members of the State Community Protection Guards set up by his administration to tackle the insecurity challenges affecting the state.
Speaking during the presentation of the security guards in Gusau, Governor Lawal said, his administration was poised to bring an end to banditry in the state.
“I am compelled to recruit the community Protection Guards considering the persistent banditry in the state, which has been claiming the lives of our people and depriving the farmers an opportunity to go to their farms.
“I want to use this opportunity to appeal to our people, particularly those living in rural communities to please cooperate with them in order to effectively fight all forms of criminal activities.”
Also, the Kogi State Government said it engaged 3, 000 personnel across the 21 Local Government Areas of the state to fight banditry and other crimes in the last one year.
The Special Adviser to Governor Usman Ododo on Media, Ismail Isah, said, “We have employed over 3000 men in the state vigilante service and local hunters across the 21 Local Government Areas in the last one year. This is in addition to the number inherited from the previous administration” he said.
The Bauchi State Government also confirmed leveraging on lawfully registered vigilante groups in fighting banditry and terrorism in the state.
The Bauchi State Commissioner for Internal Security, Abdulhamid Bununu, made this known on Tuesday.
“The groups work under the coordination of the Bauchi State Commissioner of Police. They have been very helpful and work alongside the police whenever we have to raid terrorists hideouts like the Lame Burra forest, where bandits from Zamfara sometimes cross the border.”
Abdulhamid added, “Although there might be self-acclaimed groups among the vigilantes who are not duly registered, the Bauchi State Government only employs the services of registered, reputable and professional groups.”
The Special Adviser on Security Matters to the Sokoto State Governor, Col Ahmed Usman (retd.), told The PUNCH the Sokoto Community Guard Corps was set up to serve as local security team supporting the security agents in the state.
He added that the corps would also support the military with useful information in the battle against banditry in the state.
He said the state government, under the leadership of Governor Ahmed Aliyu, established the corps in response to the yearnings of the people of the state.
“The state government established the corps in order to tackle the rising rate of insecurity in the state and they have been mobilised and posted to different local governments,” Usman said.
Also speaking, the Chief Press Secretary to the Kebbi State Governor, Ahmed Idris, said the state government had always supported the local vigilante in the state.
He said the government had set up plans to give them stipends in order to encourage their activities, which he said was assisting the security agents in the state.
Meanwhile, the NBS findings also revealed that rural areas were more affected by crime than urban areas, with 26.53 million crime incidents in rural households compared to 25.36 million in urban areas.
The report highlighted the severity of kidnapping, with 4.14 million households experiencing home robbery.
Of those affected by kidnappings, 65 per cent were forced to pay ransom to secure the release of victims.
The average ransom paid was N2.67m, contributing to the total of N2.23tn paid by Nigerians to criminals during the 12-month period.
Despite this, only 36.3 per cent of those who experienced home robbery reported the incidents to the police, with a similarly low reporting rate for kidnapping.
The report read, “Nationally, an estimated 51,887,032 crime incidences were experienced by households. The North-West (14,402,254) reported the highest incidences of crime at household level, followed by North-Central (8,771,400), while South-East (6,176,031) reported the least. The result also shows that the crime incidence in the rural area (26,526,069) was higher than that of the urban area (25,360,963).
“In Nigeria, 4,142,174 households experienced home robbery. Less than half (36.3 per cent) of the households who were victims of home robbery reported their experience to the police. Among households that experienced kidnapping incidents, 65.0 per cent paid a ransom. The average amount paid as ransom was N2,670,693, with an estimated total ransom of N2,231,772,563,507 paid within the reference period.”
Many victims cited a lack of confidence in law enforcement and a belief that police intervention would not lead to meaningful action as the main reasons for not reporting.
The survey also revealed that 21.4 per cent of Nigerians fell victim to crime at the individual level, with phone theft being the most common crime, affecting 13.8 per cent of the population.
While 90 per cent of phone theft victims reported the crimes to the police, only half of those victims were satisfied with the police response.
Also, the survey estimated that 1.4 million Nigerians were victims of sexual offences, with most incidents occurring in someone else’s home or in the victim’s own residence.
Only about 22.7 per cent of sexual offence victims reported the crimes to the police.
Despite the widespread nature of crime, public perception of safety remains low.
The survey found that 9.6 per cent of Nigerians believed they were at risk of becoming victims of crime within the next 12 months.
The fear of crime was higher in rural areas, where 13 per cent of the population felt vulnerable, compared to 7 per cent in urban areas.
The report also questioned the effectiveness of Nigeria’s security agencies, particularly the police, in responding to emergencies.
Only 33.1 per cent of Nigerians reported that security agencies responded to emergency calls within 30 minutes.
The survey revealed that approximately 4 out of 10 households interacted with state or local security forces during the survey period, with half of these households contacting the Nigerian Police.
However, satisfaction with police responses was notably low, especially in cases of livestock and crop theft, where only 42.9 per cent and 42.4 per cent of victims expressed satisfaction, respectively.
In many rural areas, local vigilante groups were seen as a more reliable source of security.