Kidnappers holding 20 prospective National Youth Service Corps members abducted along the Owerri-Onitsha Road in Imo State have reduced their ransom demand from N50m to N5m per victim, bringing the total demand down from N1bn to N100m.
The development came as the victims’ parents disclosed that the abducted graduates were being beaten by their captors, heightening fears over their safety and prompting renewed calls for urgent government intervention.
One of the affected parents, Alhaja Alimot Akande, who spoke through one of her daughters in Ibadan, Oyo State, on Sunday, said the abductors had subjected the victims to physical assault since Friday.
Akande said the reduction in the ransom had not eased the families’ anxiety because the victims remained in captivity and were allegedly being brutalised.
“The kidnappers had reduced their demand from the earlier N50m per victim to N5m each,” she said. “They are still demanding N5m. They have come down to N5m each.”
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 in Imo State.
Some of the names released by the parents are Makinde Mary Oluwapelumi, Akande Kehinde Morufat, Abdul Temiloluwa Sarah, Adeniran Mariam Olulola, Adefioye Ayomide Isaac, Adewale Paul Iyanuoluwa and Oyede Esther Funmilayo.
The parents also disputed claims that 10 passengers were rescued by security operatives after the attack, saying those who escaped did so by fleeing into the bush.
Akande said she could not confirm how much the families had raised towards the ransom, explaining that she was not privy to the arrangements between the kidnappers and the other parents.
“It has been horrible, scary and overwhelming,” she said, adding that the situation became more disturbing after she learnt that the abductors had started beating the victims.
“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 corps members were also being assaulted, Akande said the kidnappers had shown no restraint. “They are not sparing anybody. They are beating all of them,” she said.
She further disclosed that one of the abducted corps members had been allowed to communicate with his father, but alleged that the kidnappers were using the calls to assess the family’s ability to raise the ransom.
“The abductors would alert the victim whenever his father’s call came in and allow him to speak because they believed the father could provide the ransom. His father has been communicating with him. The kidnappers give him access to a telephone. Whenever his father calls, they show him that a call came in for you. He would just say, ‘Oh, that’s my father.’
“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.
The parent said the families had been relying on assurances from the police while efforts continued 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.
The Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Ladoja, had on Saturday assured the parents that their children would be rescued unharmed. “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.
Also speaking, the Oyo State Commissioner of Police, Olugbenga Abimbola, said he had contacted his counterpart in Imo State and that efforts were underway to secure the victims’ rescue. “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.
The Imo State Police Command and the 34 Artillery Brigade, Owerri, said on Sunday that efforts were ongoing to rescue the kidnapped NYSC members.
The police spokesperson for the Imo State Command, DSP Henry Okoye, said the security operatives were conducting an operation and closing in on the victims. “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, said the development was receiving adequate attention, adding that all the security agencies were working together to rescue the kidnapped travellers. “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. We will keep you informed of any significant developments as they become available.”
The Imo State Commissioner of Police, Audu Bosso, had on Saturday said the command had identified the location where the kidnapped NYSC members were being held, but security operatives had delayed moving into the camp over fears of improvised explosive devices.
According to him, the police used drones on Friday to locate the suspected camp after security operatives trailed the abductors into the bush but exercised caution because intelligence indicated that the camp had been mined with IEDs.
“Any moment, we’ll still move into the bush. 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,” he said.
Bosso said the security agencies were preparing to move into the area with heavy equipment, including bulldozers and armoured personnel carriers, in an effort to rescue the victims safely. “We are moving in there with high-velocity vehicles, that is, bulldozers. We’re moving in with bulldozers and APCs to see how we’re going to rescue these victims unhurt,” he said.
The abduction has drawn widespread condemnation from political parties, parents and other stakeholders.
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 measures to ensure the safety of corps members.
The National Publicity Secretary of the ADC, Bolaji Abdullahi, said the NYSC remained relevant to national unity but argued that the current security situation required the temporary suspension and review 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.
The National Democratic Congress and the Labour Party also condemned the abduction and demanded the immediate and safe rescue of the prospective corps members.
The NDC National Publicity Secretary, Osa Director, said the government had a constitutional responsibility to protect the lives and property of Nigerians. “We should not play with the lives and security of our children, as they are the future of the country. 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.
The Labour Party counterpart, Ken Asogwa, described the abduction as evidence of worsening insecurity and what he called moral decay in the country. “The kidnap of the corps members is indeed a reflection of the decay in the land. Beyond the perversion of insecurity that is so easily reflected in the crime, it is a testament to the fact that our moral fabrics are at the lowest ebb,” he said.
The presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, Peter Obi, also condemned the abduction and called on the Federal Government to do everything within its power to rescue the victims.
“The abduction of approximately 20 prospective NYSC members travelling to their orientation camp is yet another distressing indication of the worsening insecurity in our country. These young Nigerians were preparing to serve their nation, but they were unable to travel safely on our roads. Families are increasingly burdened by the fear that their loved ones could fall victim to kidnapping.
“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.
“I call for the immediate and safe rescue of all the abducted corps members and the arrest of those responsible. Nigeria must become a country where young people can travel, work and serve their nation without fear,” he wrote.
The presidential candidate of the African Action Congress, Omoyele Sowore, called for the scrapping of the NYSC, arguing that the scheme had “outlived its usefulness in its current form.”
“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. The NYSC should be suspended immediately and ultimately scrapped. In the meantime, all corps members should be given the option to serve within their states of origin,” he wrote on X.
The management of Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso, also expressed anguish over the reported abduction, particularly because at least three of its graduates were among those reportedly kidnapped.
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. This is a painful and deeply troubling development for the University and, most importantly, for the families of our graduates and the other young Nigerians whose lives have been so cruelly disrupted. Our immediate and overriding concern is their safety and safe return to their families,” he said.
