Fear Of Kidnappers: Lawmakers dump official vehicle number plates

Senators, members of the House of Representatives and the state Houses of Assembly have devised various means to keep safe and protect themselves in the wake of rising cases of kidnapping of eminent citizens, including politicians.

Just three weeks ago, a lawmaker from Kano State, Mr. Garba Umar-Durbunde, was kidnapped by gunmen along the Abuja-Kaduna Road, after which he reportedly paid N10m ransom to secure his freedom.

Senator Jonah Jang’s aide was killed by kidnappers last weekend and it was said that the former Plateau State governor was the target.

Reports showed that one of the strategies adopted by many federal lawmakers was to lie low to avoid being identified in public and drawing attention to themselves.

It was learnt that many senators and House of Representatives’ members no longer use official number plates on their vehicles in a bid to keep starring eyes in check.

For instance, a member of the House of Representatives, who spoke on condition of anonymity, disclosed that in the past, it was prestigious and fashionable for legislators to use their official number plates but not anymore because of the level of insecurity in the country.

The member asked, “Look around, how many members do you see using their number plates with ‘Rep’ boldly written and displayed?

“Before now, it was fashionable to do so. The number plates could open the way for you because it identified you as a VIP; but not anymore because of security concerns.

“These days, people do not want to be identified as lawmakers. When a member uses the official number plate, you will find out that it will be covered.

“Covering the plates ordinarily means that they are not riding in the vehicles, but the truth is that they are there in them.

“Generally, they want to keep a low profile. Some prefer that they are not noticed at all than for them to be noticed with a retinue of policemen, which draws attention.”

~ThePunch