The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) is experiencing an increase in kidnappings, particularly in the Bwari Area Council. As a result, people are fleeing their homes to avoid being targeted by terrorists.
Even after promises from previous and current governments to address security in the Federal Capital Territory, kidnappings continue, forcing inhabitants to abandon their homes.
Kuje, Abaji, and Bwari have been designated by the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) as hotspots for kidnappings in the FCT, particularly during the holiday season.
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A number of kidnapping events have been reported, including the mass kidnapping of twelve people in Gbaupe along Airport Road and twenty-three residents of Dei-dei, Bwari.
People are being targeted directly, especially in Bwari’s developing regions, which has caused a major departure of residents from their houses out of fear. It’s being stated that this is having an impact on rent prices in safer neighbourhoods.
A Bwari resident named Somto Ekwerike told The ICIR that those living in the council’s developing regions are the main targets and that they have fled their houses out of fear.
“People are leaving the area, especially the rural areas or residential houses built in developing areas. You know that people in these developing areas mostly build their own houses, so they are seen as wealthy, making them targets. Most of them had to leave their homes for Bwari central. It is even beginning to affect the cost of rent here,” she explained.
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A homeowner in Bwari’s Barangoni neighbourhood named Ijaodola Wasiu described his experience to The ICIR, saying that he was forced to move his family to different areas of the Federal Capital Territory. This choice came at a high cost, around N1.4 million, even though the flat included four bedrooms.
He stated that the relocation was brought about by three days of different kidnappings that took place in his neighbourhood and nearby places.
“After the first, second, and third day, my family said they were not safe anymore. Everybody started moving. That is how my family left the house. Other families, too, are going. Many people have gone,” he expressed.
Kidnappings persist in different regions of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) notwithstanding Minister Nyesom Wike’s assurances in his New Year’s speech emphasising the FCTA’s commitment to residents’ safety.
At least 42 persons were abducted in the Bwari Area Council in the first few weeks of 2024 alone.
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A father and his six children were kidnapped in the Zuma 1 Area of Bwari, leading to a devastating loss when one of the sisters was killed. This was a particularly upsetting episode.
Ten people of Sangwari Estate, Dutse, in Bwari were kidnapped three days later, continuing the trend of kidnappings.
The security situation in the FCT worsened on January 10 when 23 inhabitants of Kawu, a village between Niger and Kaduna states, were kidnapped.
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