After spending 56 days in captivity, former Director General of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), Brigadier-General Maharazu Tsiga (rtd), has regained his freedom from kidnappers.

Tsiga was abducted from his hometown in Bakori Local Government Area of Katsina State, on February 5, 2025. He was kidnapped alongside nine other residents.

However, after paying ransom by his family, his abductors still held him captive for weeks.

There were conflicting figures regarding the ransom paid earlier. While some claimed N60million was paid, others claimed that the actual money paid was three times higher.

A close family member said that after receiving the money, the kidnappers kept mum for one week before contacting the family, where they put the general on the phone to speak with them. That was the unfortunate torture and agony the retired military officer went through.

The fundamental question bothering many Nigerians is if a military General like Tsiga can be kidnapped and kept for 56 days and a huge amount of money paid for his release, what is the fate of the ordinary Nigerian?

Recall that in December 2024, when the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) released a report revealing that Nigerians paid an estimated N2.3 trillion as ransom in  12 month, many Nigerians and security agencies had doubted the report. The figure, which was captured in the 2024 Crime Experience and Security Perception Survey (CESPS), highlighted the alarming prevalence and financial burden of crimes in the country.

The survey, which covered the period from May 2023 to April 2024, showed that 65 per cent of households affected by kidnapping incidents resorted to paying ransoms to secure the release of victims. On average, each household paid N2.67 million per incident.

According to the report, nationally, an estimated 51,887,032 crime incidences were experienced by households. The North-west with about 14,402,254 reported the highest incidences of crime at the household level, followed by the North-central (8,771,400), while the South-east (6,176,031) reported the least.

The amount collected from Tsiga has vindicated the authors of the report.

The retirement benefits he should have been using to take care of himself and family in peace after serving the country meritoriously were handed over to criminals. That is the unfortunate situation many Nigerians have found themselves today.

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