Former Minister of Sports and chieftain of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Solomon Dalung, has linked the spread of criminal groups across Nigeria to the military campaign against Boko Haram in the north-east.
Speaking on Politics HQ, a programme aired on News Central, Dalung said the dispersal of Boko Haram fighters from the north-east has directly contributed to the rise of banditry and kidnapping in the north-west, Plateau, and other regions.
“What started as a localised issue has evolved into an organised criminal enterprise,”; he said, noting that kidnapping for ransom has turned into a “political economy”;.
According to him, the expansion of these criminal activities is also driven by a struggle over land rich in mineral resources.
He said, “The genocidal elimination of native communities, to grab their land which is very rich in minerals deposits, and then the sponsors who sustain this criminality, that are interested in the minerals deposits.”;
Dalung criticized the government for neglecting areas like Plateau State, historically known for its mining wealth.
He also accused authorities of withholding the truth about the origins of the armed groups.
He cited evidence from criminal interrogations, saying some suspects have disclosed the identities of their sponsors.
Recalling a televised confession, Dalung said, “When they asked him ‘how much have you collected for ransom?’, he said ‘in one of the instances, we collected N100 million. How much were you given?’ he said N200,000.”;
