The Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-rufai, has spoken against the payment of ransom to kidnappers, saying he won’t involve in such even if his son is kidnapped.

El-rufai said this during a radio interview on Friday.

“I mean it and I will say it again here. Even if my son is kidnapped, I will rather pray for him to make heaven instead, because I won’t pay any ransom,” he said.

The Governor also said his administration is not considering paying ransom to secure the release of the students abducted by bandits from the Federal College of Forestry Mechanisation, Kaduna, in March.

According to him, the government is “absolutely not paying ransom” but considering other means to ensure the students are returned to their parents.

The PUNCH reported yesterday that El-rufai said bandits must be wiped out entirely because they have lost the right to life.

He said this during a town hall meeting on national security organised by the Ministry of Information and Culture held in Kaduna and monitored by our correspondent on Thursday.

According to him, “These bandits have lost their right to life under our constitution and must be wiped out in their entirety. There is no other way to approach the current insurgency situation today as far as governmental action is concerned.

“The bandits are at war with Nigeria and there is no other way to approach the current insurgency but for security forces to take the war to the bandits and recover forests where they are occupying.

“The security agencies mostly react to cases of banditry and abduction, we are in a war with these terrorist challenging the sovereignty of the Nigerian state.

“Our security forces must collaborate to take the war to the bandits and terrorists, recover and restore the forest to enable our law-abiding citizens to engage in legitimate farming and livestock production.”