NMA urges action against insecurity in Edo

EDO State chapter of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) yesterday lamented what it called poor state of security in the state, saying the security agencies are not making use of intelligence information available to curb crimes. The complaint followed the closure of banks in Edo-Central in the past three weeks over incessant robbery incidents, a situation that has created hardship for the people in the area.   Banks have refused to open for business in the past two weeks due to attacks on the financial institutions almost daily. The NMA, therefore, called for an overhaul of security apparatuses in Edo State for efficiency. A statement jointly signed by the state chairman of the association, Philip Ugbodaga, its secretary, Emmanuel Ighodaro and its public relations officer, Kennedy Alohan, said one of its members, Dr. Paul Oriaifo, was on Sunday morning abducted by suspected kidnappers in Ekpoma. The Guardian gathered that the abductors were demanding a ransom of N6 million but the NMA yesterday said it was not ready to pay and not encouraging the family of Oriaifo to pay any ransom. The statement read: The NMA, Edo State branch, is extremely concerned that kidnapping is still a prevalent and thriving business in Nigeria. Despite the often-trumpeted resolve by both the state and Federal Government to tackle this emerging threat to free movement and to humanity, very little is being done in that regard. The inability to curb this menace is a failure of intelligence gathering. While we join the rest of the world to celebrate the killing this morning of Osama Bin Laden as a result of sound intelligence networked, we recommend undercover intelligence operations by the various security agencies to deal with the problem of kidnapping. We have arrived to a breaking point. Medical personnel are now unable to differentiate between abductors and genuine patients, making it increasingly difficult for doctors to undertake their humane duty to save lives. If this problem is not curbed fast, the effect on the society will be devastating. The abductors of Dr. Paul Oriaifo are demanding N6 million. Neither the NMA nor the family is prepared to negotiate any payment of ransom for his release. We demand his unconditional release and hereby charge the security agencies to do all that is necessary to get him freed.
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