Premium Times

Minister of Defence Mohammed Badaru Abubakar.

Defense Minister, Mohammed Badaru Abubakar, has resigned with immediate effect on health grounds, the presidency announced. His departure came as President Bola Tinubu declared a national security emergency amid a sharp rise in armed banditry and mass kidnappings.

Over the previous two weeks, nearly 490 people had been abducted across several states, including 315 children taken from St. Mary’s Catholic boarding school in Niger State, where about 50 later escaped. The northwest and north-central regions saw an increase in ransom-driven attacks on churches, wedding parties, and rural communities.

In the wake of the kidnappings, President Tinubu declared a security emergency and ordered mass recruitment of police and military personnel.