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For this, he said, he was as paid N2.5 million.
It's Prince Igodo himself that introduced me to this business (of kidnapping). He comes to my community Ogbakiri in Emohua local government area, to see some friends and he was once a gubernatorial aspirant in People's Democratic Party, in Rivers State when he declared his intention to contest for the governorship post last year.
"I was given N2.5 million and that was the only one I was directly involved in," he said.
Nnamdi Eme's story might not be as convincing as that of Ekene Ibebuka for Ekene played an active role in the kidnap game. Ekene who hails from Nwangele local government area of Imo State and belongs to the Degbam cult in Port Harcourt said that a friend of his China introduced him into kidnapping early this year. "I saw one of my friends, China. When he saw my state, he told me there's a business coming, which he was planning with one of his friends, Alhaji Isa. So, when that business came up, China called me, saying I should not tell anybody, that I should come. When I came, I saw some other people there. After discussing the business (kidnap) he invited me to a Ogbogboco village. After some days, because I was not financially committed to the business they were the ones arranging it.
They would just call me whenever it was time for operation and I would join them to get some from them. So after they finished their arrangement on that day, China now called me that I should come that they wanted to go for business. That was how I got involved.
He told me specifically that there were two white men to catch (kidnap) at Rumuolumeni, Iwof Road in Port Harcourt.
I was not armed but the Prince and his boys were armed. There were five boys armed on that day and we were 15 in number for this business that day," he narrated.
For this business Ibebuka said, he was paid N2.4 million which helped him pay for a land his parents had been itching to buy and a 190 Mercedez Benz.
This is just one angle to the reasons behind Niger-Delta big business. A school of thought argues that militancy in the region came about when desperate politicians in the wake of 2003 recruited unemployed youths and equipped them with arms to effect their second terms in office.
On achieving the aim, the politicians abandoned them. The youths now took to illegal oil bunkering and when their only source of making quick and big money was cut short following state government's decisive action to stop oil bunkerings the youths took to the creeks. Necessity, it is said is the mother of invention. When after a while the youths had run short of money, they devised another means of making big and quick money as usual.
They only way they could think of was kidnapping expatriates. Lending credence to the use of these youths to achieve political victory an anonymous source linked Mrs Omeiha's kidnap toa group, K12 one of Sir Celestines Omehia's political groups. Omehia, the source stressed was the target but he escaped. According to the source, Omeiha gave the group N12 million through a middleman and the money disappeared into thin air.
Another N5 million was also said to have been paid to the group through the middleman also disappeared again. This angered the group and they came for him (Celestin Omehia). When he escaped, they settled for his 70 year-old mother.
An estimated 100 persons especially expatriate workers have been kidnapped since inception of kidnap while an estimated N1 billion has been paid to armed militants to secure the release of some of the expatriate oil workers.
To further stress the big deal in kidnap these days, a story has it of a 200 level student in one of the Universities who abandoned schooling for kidnapping.
Now, the boy has a new Prado Jeep, two new Chevrolet brand of cars and boasts of two, two-story buildings worth over N30 million each.
The success story of kidnapping goes on and on and most of these scrupulous youths have capitalized on the vulnerability of the oil companies and their expatriate staff to perpetrate their sin.
Another group of people who have benefited from the "Niger Delta big deal" are the elders and kinsmen of these militants.
Their duty is to serve as link between the militants and either the oil companies or the state governments. They are the first people to be given the money to effect the release of hostages.
It is said that immediately there is a kidnap most of them jostle to be the middleman for whichever company
Also in the Niger Delta region, as a result of the high level of kidnap so many non-governmental organization are sprouting preaching peace and milking whoever supports peace in that region especially from government quarters.
The after effect of these keen watchers say, is that though there is more money in circulation for few people, the environmentalists, are on their own still pursuing their age-long requests from the government.
Public Affairs analysts still argue that though kidnapping is not the best way to fight for a right, the militants have ended devising a means of livelihood for a few people who would have hitherto fought for their collective rights.
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