Kidnappers holding 26 women from Allawa Community in Shiroro Local Government Area of Niger State have released a video featuring two of the captives, pleading for their families to meet the kidnappers’ demands for 130 motorcycles in exchange for their release.
According to DailyTrust, the 30-second video, showed one of the women tied to a tree, appealing to her family to deliver the items demanded by the kidnappers.
Speaking in Hausa, she called on a relative named Abdulrahman for help, saying, “Umar, please talk to Abdulrahman. They have brought me to a service area now. They said they cannot release me until the items they demanded are delivered. They said I should talk so that you will hear my voice. I have injuries on my legs. For the sake of Allah and His Prophet, help bring the items. They said if you bring the items, they will release me along with Hajiya. I am here with Hajiya,” she pleads in the video.
A resident of the area, Abba Usman, confirmed that the women in the video are among the 26 kidnapped in February of this year.
He revealed that the families of the two women have already provided six motorcycles but are now being asked to supply four more before the women can be freed.
Usman further explained that the families of the remaining 24 women are struggling to meet the kidnappers’ demands. The bandits are demanding five motorcycles for each of the 26 women, with each motorcycle valued at N2 million.
“My mother and sister were among those kidnapped seven months ago on Allawa-Pandogari Road. On that day, eight men were killed before the women were taken away. The bandits have asked us to provide five motorcycles for each of the 26 women. We couldn’t raise the money, which is why they are still in captivity.
Recently, they sent a video showing two of the women. The families of these two women provided six motorcycles, but the bandits have now demanded four more motorcycles. They sent the video to confirm that the women are still alive and will be released once the additional motorcycles are provided. For now, we don’t even have anything left to sell to raise money for these motorcycles,” Usman explained.
Meanwhile, the Gbagyi socio-cultural group, Gbenu Boknu Yakwo, has called on Niger State Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago to dismiss the Commissioner for Homeland Security, Brigadier General Bello Abdullahi (RTD), citing failures to address the worsening security situation in Allawa and other communities in Shiroro Local Government Area.
In a statement by the President of the Gbenu Boknu Yakwo Association, Bako Wakili Bosso, criticized the commissioner for denying that bandits and terrorists have taken over Allawa.
The statement condemned the commissioner’s recent remarks during an interview with an international media outlet, calling them out of touch with the harsh realities faced by the residents.
“We, the Gbenu Boknu Yakwo Association, are deeply disappointed in Brigadier General Bello Abdullahi (RTD) for his recent false claims that our people in Allawa and surrounding communities, who have been terrorized by bandits and kidnappers, have resumed their normal farming activities.
“The commissioner’s assertion during a BBC Hausa service interview—that normalcy has returned to Allawa in Shiroro LGA—mockingly disregards the suffering of residents who have been displaced from their ancestral lands due to banditry and terrorism.
“Niger citizens know that our people fled Allawa and surrounding areas on April 25, 2024, after soldiers stationed there were withdrawn. Despite five months passing since this exodus, the commissioner has failed to explain why the soldiers have not returned. Instead, he engaged in media misdirection, denying the reality of the ongoing crisis.
“We condemn the commissioner’s attempts to manipulate public perception and trivialize the plight of those displaced and traumatized by banditry and insurgency. His actions demonstrate gross inefficiency and incompetence in addressing the security challenges in Allawa and neighboring villages.
“We, therefore, call on Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago to urgently remove the incompetent commissioner of homeland security to prevent further frustration and anger from the farming communities.
“We also urge both the state and federal governments to take decisive action to eliminate the terrorists and enable the displaced residents to return to their homes and resume their farming activities,” the statement read.
