Kogi State Governor, Ahmed Usman Ododo has reiterated that his administration will neither negotiate with kidnappers nor pay ransom, following the rescue of four people abducted from a purported NECO examination centre in Dekina Local Government Area.

The governor made the declaration on Friday while receiving the rescued victims at the Government House in Lokoja, where he commended security agencies for their coordinated operation that led to their release.

Ododo said his government would remain firm against criminal elements, insisting that kidnapping would not be tolerated in the state. He also praised President Bola Tinubu for providing support to security agencies in the fight against insecurity across the country.

The governor further directed authorities to investigate the circumstances surrounding the conduct of the National Examinations Council (NECO) examination at an abandoned government secondary school that had previously been closed over security concerns.

He said the probe would establish how the facility came to be used as an examination centre and determine whether any rules were breached.

Kogi State Commissioner of Police, Naziru Bello Kankarofi, said the rescued victims comprised the school principal, a NECO official and two female examination candidates.

According to him, the victims regained their freedom after sustained pressure from joint security operatives forced the kidnappers to abandon them.

The police also alleged that the abandoned school was being used as an unauthorised special examination centre for 10 candidates and claimed the facility had become a venue for examination malpractice.

Kankarofi said investigations were ongoing to determine the circumstances surrounding the operation, while security agencies continued efforts to identify and arrest those responsible for the abduction.