Lagos APC appeals for Ozekhome’s release

The Lagos State Chapter of the All Progressives Congress, APC, has
lamented the abduction of radical senior lawyer, Mike Ozekhome, by
kidnappers in his native Edo State.
The party said that increasing cases of insecurity in Nigeria calls
for urgent action to address the rising poverty level in Nigeria,
which is fuelling the security crisis in the country.
In a press release in Lagos, signed by the Lagos State Interim
Publicity Secretary of the APC, Joe Igbokwe, the party claimed that
rather than channelling efforts to reduce poverty in Nigeria, the PDP
federal government is fuelling the massive corruption and looting that
had targeted resources meant for improving the lives of the people.
It said that the country risks being plunged into an intractable
security quagmire unless proactive measures are taken to use the huge
national resources that are being looted to address the pressing needs
of poor Nigerians.
"The kidnap of Mike Ozekhome is condemnable given that he remains one
of the few people that share deep empathy with the Nigerian masses on
issues that border on their common interest. We see his kidnap as a
sign that Nigerians are becoming increasingly insecure and this
demandsan urgent action aimed at taming the wildfire of youth
unemployment andgeneral poverty.
"We feel concerned that the present federal government is not
interested in dealing with the issue of joblessness and increasing
poverty aside fromdropping laughable statistics of economic growth
while the reality shows massive penury and general poverty.
"We find it detestable that the nation is being plunged into a
worsening security miasma because the level of poverty continues to
rise while ironically, the country harvests hugely from an unflagging
oil boom, whichin fourteen years of PDP corrupt and inept leadership,
has left Nigeria a poverty-ridden country where various types of
violent crime have made lifebrutish, short and nasty. APC believes
that solving the problem of kidnapping and other forms of insecurity
starts with engaging trained andcapable Nigerians youths in meaningful
work. We believe that Nigeria hasthe resources to ensure that its
educated youths secure employment after their education instead of
pursuing a life in crime," it said.
The party also appealed "to the kidnappers of Mike Ozekhome to
urgently release him as he is a wrong target.
"As a human rights activist, we want to let the kidnappers know that
Ozekhome is concerned about the worsening fates of Nigerian youth and
indeed all Nigerians as we wallow in unrestrained misery from the
hands of political profiteers. We urge them to listen to the yearnings
of Nigerians and release Mike Ozekhome from captivity so he can
continue to make his contributions to the solution of the problems
that presently beset the Nigerian masses, including those holding him
hostage," the statement said.