National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu has fired back at former Kaduna State governor Nasir El-Rufai over claims that the government is paying bandits.
In a statement issued on Monday by Zakari Mijinyawa, an adviser in the Office of the NSA, Ribadu described El-Rufai’s allegations as false, baseless, and insulting to Nigeria’s security forces.
El-Rufai had alleged on national television that Ribadu’s office was coordinating ransom payments and incentives to bandits. Ribadu dismissed the claim, stressing that no arm of government under the current administration has ever engaged in such practices.
“The attention of the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) has been drawn to comments made by the former Governor of Kaduna State, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, in a television interview on Sunday. In that interview, he alleged, falsely, that the ONSA coordinates a policy of payments and offers incentives to bandits. This claim is baseless. At no time has the ONSA, or any arm of government under this administration, engaged in ransom payments or inducements to criminals,” the statement read.
Ribadu added that the government has consistently warned against paying ransom, noting that the administration adopted a dual strategy of decisive military operations and community engagement to tackle insecurity.
He highlighted successes in Igabi, Birnin Gwari, Giwa, and other parts of Kaduna, where notorious bandit leaders such as Boderi, Baleri, Sani Yellow Janburos, Buhari, and Boka were eliminated, while leaders of Ansaru were recently captured.
“These gains came at a cost, with some of our gallant officers paying the supreme price. For a former governor to deny these sacrifices on national television is unfair and deeply insulting to the memories of our security personnel,” the statement continued.
Ribadu urged El-Rufai and other political figures to stop dragging national security institutions into partisan disputes, emphasizing that the fight against banditry is a collective effort, not a tool for political point-scoring.
