Gunmen killed 2,583 people and kidnapped 2,164 in the first quarter of this year, a report by Abuja-based Beacon Security and Intelligence Limited, has revealed.
The report said the killings and abductions took place nationwide from January to March, adding that 80 percent of the killings and 94 percent of the abductions took place in the North.
The data from the Beacon Security and Intelligence Limited showed that 793 were killed from the North-West, 681 from the North-East and 596 from the North-Central.
The South-West recorded 194 killings, the South-South, 161 people; and South-East, 158.
The five states with the highest number of killings were Borno, 517; Benue, 313; Katsina, 252; Zamfara, 212 and Kaduna, 206.
It noted that the killings were as a result of m bandits’ attacks, farmers/herders’ conflicts and communal clashes.
The data showed that of the 2,164 persons kidnapped within the period, 1,297 were seized in the North-West, 421 in the North-East, 330 in the North-Central, 30 in the South-West, 66 in the South-South and 20 in the South-East.
Kaduna State had the highest number of abductees with 546; Zamfara, 447; Borno, 340; Katsina, 252 and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), 102.
The CEO of Beacon Security and Intelligence Limited, Kabiru Adamu, identified the security challenge in the North to ineffective justice system, poor land administration policies, presence of non-state armed groups, ungoverned spaces, porous borders as well as proliferation of small arms and light weapons were responsible for the twin crimes
According to Adamu, the large youth population lacking education and skills as well as a governance system failing to meet the developmental needs of the people poses serious challenges.
He said the nation’s security challenges could best be improved through collaboration among security sector organisations, federal and state governments as well as neighbouring countries.
