Gov Soludo Under Fire Over Claims That 99 Percent Of Arrested Kidnappers Are Igbo, Not Fulani

Anambra State governor and former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Chukwuma Soludo is under fire, following his claims that about 99% of all the arrested kidnappers in the state were Igbo, not Fulani herdsmen.

Soludo spoke at Maryland, United States, on Monday, July 7, 2025, during his visit to the US. 

However, the statement has drawn a sharp and damning response from the International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law, Intersociety, a human rights and advocacy group in the country, which accused the governor of dishing out the "concocted narratives.”

Soludo claimed during his speech that, “Out of 99.5% of those arrested by the government in various camps belonging to kidnappers across the state, none is a member of the killer herdsmen.”

The governor had further dismissed security reports about Fulani herdsmen occupying forests in Anambra as “false narratives.”

But in a rebuttal signed by the Intersociety Board Chairmen, Emeka Umeagbalasi, the group described the governor’s statement as “reckless,” “vexatious,” and “gravely endangering the security and safety of the state and her citizens.

“The Governor is gravely endangering the security and safety of the State (Anambra)… especially their present and future safety.

“His government’s kid-gloves and lukewarm approaches to jihadist herdsmen and their genocidal activities across the state since the inception of his administration on March 17, 2022, are deeply troubling," 

Intersociety stated.

It further accused Soludo of shielding the killer herdsmen despite evidence of their involvement in violent crimes, adding that, they account for “not less than 30% of violent crimes across the state...

“About 60% or more of forest camps belonging to violent criminals… including armed herdsmen are yet to be accessed or raided by security forces.”

Referencing a media report published on June 23, 2025, Umeagbalasi said Anambra State has been listed among 11 states that embraced the Nigerian government’s cattle ranching plan, a move he described as “blind, selfish and strongly condemnable.”

Intersociety warned of the long-term consequences of the state’s alleged complicity.

“Anambra State… now sits on a keg of jihadist gunpowder… with grave dangers,” the group further warned, pointing out a 

specific incident in April 2024, where a family of three was abducted and allegedly raped by herdsmen in the Ukwulu forest.

Intersociety claimed that after being alerted, the state government denied the incident and labelled it a “concocted narrative.”

Umeagbalasi added, “His assertion that ‘none of the 99.5% of those arrested in Anambra State is a member of killer herdsmen’… does not hold water, especially against the backdrop of intelligence bias and lack of credible forensic capabilities by the state.”

According to the group, in 2021, a senior official in Soludo’s government was accused of facilitating land acquisitions for herdsmen in various Anambra communities, including Awka North and South, Ayamelum, and Dunukofia.

Intersociety maintained that “the worst and most dangerous part” of the Soludo administration's sins was its alleged role in bringing the herdsmen ranching agenda to the South-East, potentially at the cost of future security and cultural survival of the people in the area.