Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, a former Special Adviser to Vice President Kashim Shettima has revealed harrowing details of his Nephew’s kidnap by bandits in 2025.
Baba-Ahmed, who served as SA on political matters to VP Shettima, made the disclosure in a recent interview. He stated that his family has also fallen victim to the country’s insecurity despite his access to power.
The former SA divulged that his nephew was kidnapped alongside three people in 2025 at a farm in Kaduna. Following the abduction, they were taken a few kilometres into the bush where they spent 37 days.
He explained that he was still working at the Aso Villa during the time of the kidnapping.
He stated that;
“There was hardly anybody I didn’t speak to. We gave them the coordinates, which were easy to get. The first time, they asked for N25 million, three motorcycles, a lot of drugs, a lot of medications, rice, and all sorts of things.”
The former SA stressed that his efforts to secure his Nephew’s rescue were all to no avail. He emphasized that this happened despite his access to people in power.
All in all, between the first day they were kidnapped and when they were released, we spent close to N175 million,” Baba-Ahmed recounted.
He highlighted that the payment included about N120 million paid in three tranches. He added that during one of the payments, the military directed people who wanted to pay the ransom in the right way, without going after the bandits.
The former SA noted that the continued insecurity issues may be linked to the inefficiency of the existing system.
