Kidnappers holding 20 prospective National Youth Service Corps members abducted along the Owerri-Onitsha Road in Imo State have slashed their ransom demand from N50m to N5m per victim, even as the abducted graduates are reportedly being beaten by their captors.
The reduction brings the total ransom being demanded for the 20 victims down from N1bn to N100m.
But rather than easing the anxiety of the victims’ families, the development has heightened fears over their safety, with relatives appealing to the Federal Government and security agencies to urgently secure their release.
One of the parents, Alhaja Alimot Akande, who spoke through one of her daughters in Ibadan, Oyo State, on Sunday, said the kidnappers had been physically assaulting the victims since Friday.
“The kidnappers had reduced their demand from the earlier N50m per victim to N5m each. They are still demanding N5m. They have come down to N5m each,” she said.
The prospective corps members were travelling from Ibadan to their NYSC orientation camps in Abia and Akwa Ibom states on Thursday when gunmen attacked the two buses conveying them around Umunoha on the Owerri-Onitsha Road.
The victims included Makinde Mary Oluwapelumi, Akande Kehinde Morufat, Abdul Temiloluwa Sarah, Adeniran Mariam Olulola, Adefioye Ayomide Isaac, Adewale Paul Iyanuoluwa and Oyede Esther Funmilayo, among others.
The parents disclosed the identities during a visit to the private residence of the Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Rashidi Ladoja, in Bodija, Ibadan North Local Government Area, on Saturday.
The families also disputed earlier claims that 10 of the passengers had been rescued by security operatives, insisting that those who escaped the attack did so by fleeing into the bush.
The Managing Director of Uko Akwa Ibom Motors Nigeria Limited, Isiah Akpan, had earlier confirmed the initial N50m ransom demand per victim.
‘They are beating all of them’
Akande said the reduction in the ransom had done little to calm the families because the victims remained in captivity and were allegedly being brutalised.
“Sir, we appeal to the government at all levels to please assist us in getting them rescued out of that place. They have started beating them since yesterday,” she said.
Asked whether the female victims were also being assaulted, Akande replied, “They are not sparing anybody. They are beating all of them.”
She further revealed that one of the abducted prospective corps members had been allowed to speak with his father, but alleged that the kidnappers were monitoring the communication as they assessed the family’s ability to raise the ransom.
According to her, the kidnappers would alert the victim whenever his father called and allow him to speak briefly.
“They know money will come out of father’s hands, so they would just pick it and allow him to talk. And they have been beating him. They have been beating all of them,” she said.
Akande said the families were relying on assurances from the police while struggling to raise the ransom.
“The police are telling us to still be buying time. We are still looking for the money. Depending, they will see them rescued,” she said.
She described the ordeal as “horrible, scary and overwhelming.”
Olubadan assures families
The Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Rashidi Ladoja, on Saturday assured the distraught parents that efforts were being made to secure the victims’ safe release.
“I want to assure that your children would be rescued unharmed. We will relate whatever information we gather to you. The police are working round the clock to secure their rescue. Don’t worry yourself, the police are up to the task, and nothing would happen to your children,” he said.
The Oyo State Commissioner of Police, Olugbenga Abimbola, also said he had contacted his Imo State counterpart over the incident.
“I had already contacted Imo State CP. We have been talking since the day of the incident, and he assured me that the victims would be rescued unhurt,” he said.
Police locate suspected kidnappers’ camp
The Imo State Police Command said security agencies had identified the location where the victims were being held and were working to rescue them.
The Imo State Commissioner of Police, Audu Bosso, disclosed on Saturday that security operatives had trailed the kidnappers into the bush and used drones to identify their suspected camp.
However, he said the operation was delayed because intelligence indicated that the camp had been planted with improvised explosive devices.
“Yesterday, we were in the bush; we trailed them up to a particular location. But at that point in time, we couldn’t move in to where the coordinates showed us because we ran drones yesterday. And the drone actually showed us exactly their location.
“But our predicament is that with the intel we have, the camp is mined with IEDs,” Bosso said.
He said security forces were preparing to move into the area with heavy equipment, including bulldozers and armoured personnel carriers, to ensure the victims were rescued safely.
The police spokesperson, DSP Henry Okoye, said on Sunday that the operation was ongoing.
“We’re conducting the operation and gradually closing in. We will keep you posted,” he said.
The Public Relations Officer of the 34 Artillery Brigade, Owerri, Major Hashimu Abdullahi, also said security agencies were working together on the rescue operation.
“Please, be assured that all necessary efforts are being made in collaboration with all relevant security agencies regarding the matter. The situation is receiving the required attention, and every available avenue is being explored to ensure a positive outcome,” he said.
ADC demands one-year NYSC suspension
Amid growing concern over the incident, the African Democratic Congress called for the suspension of the NYSC scheme for one year to allow the Federal Government to reorganise the programme and strengthen security measures.
The party’s National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, said the NYSC remained important to national unity but argued that the worsening security situation required an urgent rethink of the scheme.
“I think the NYSC is still relevant. But I think we need to respond to the current situation of insecurity in the country.
“If we were to advise the President, we think this is the time to suspend it for at least one year to give room for proper reorganisation, in such a way that it will protect the young people and also make the scheme worthwhile for them,” he said.
Opposition parties demand urgent rescue
The National Democratic Congress and Labour Party also condemned the abduction and demanded the immediate and safe rescue of the victims.
The NDC National Publicity Secretary, Osa Director, said the government had a constitutional responsibility to protect the lives and property of Nigerians.
“The primary purpose of government as enshrined in Section 14(2) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended) is the security of lives and property of the citizens,” he said.
Labour Party spokesman Ken Asogwa described the abduction as evidence of worsening insecurity and warned against abandoning the victims.
“As we speak, kidnapped Niger State school pupils are still in captivity and the nation seems to have moved on. I hope that Nigeria will not also abandon these innocent corps members whose only offence was enrolment into the mandatory NYSC scheme,” he said.
The Social Democratic Party also condemned the incident, describing it as “a shame of a nation,” while the Young Progressives Party called the abduction a painful reminder of the government’s failure to adequately address the country’s security crisis.
Sowore demands NYSC scrapping
African Action Congress presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, called for the immediate suspension and eventual scrapping of the NYSC scheme.
“You cannot force young Nigerians to ‘serve their fatherland’ when the same country cannot guarantee their safety while they travel to their places of service,” Sowore said.
He advocated allowing corps members to serve within their states of origin pending the eventual scrapping of the scheme.
Obi, LAUTECH condemn abduction
Former Anambra State governor and presidential candidate Peter Obi also condemned the incident, describing it as another disturbing indication of worsening insecurity.
Obi called for the immediate and safe rescue of all the abducted corps members and the arrest of those responsible.
“Protecting lives and property is the government’s foremost responsibility. We cannot continue to regard insecurity as an ordinary occurrence or act only after people’s lives have been disrupted,” he said.
The management of Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso, also expressed concern after it emerged that at least three of its graduates were among those abducted.
The Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Razaq Kalilu, called for coordinated efforts by security agencies to secure the victims’ release.
“The University stands firmly with the affected families at this deeply distressing moment,” he said.
Calls for stronger security
The Oyo State governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Senator Sharafadeen Alli, also condemned the abduction and appealed for the unconditional release of the victims.
Alli urged security agencies to intensify efforts to locate and rescue the prospective corps members while calling for stronger security measures along major inter-state highways.
“The NYSC was established to promote national unity and integration. These young people should not become victims while answering the call to serve their country,” he said.
The Seyi Makinde Allied Peoples Movement 2027 Presidential Campaign Council similarly called on President Bola Tinubu, as Commander-in-Chief, to take immediate action to secure the release of the victims.
The organisation also urged the government to intensify efforts to rescue other Nigerians held captive across Niger, Kwara, Kaduna, Zamfara, Sokoto, Katsina, Borno and other states.
For the families of the 20 prospective corps members, however, the priority remains immediate: their children must come home alive.
