The 68 passengers abducted by terrorists on March 28 after the bombing of an Abuja-Kaduna train are today 20 days old in the dungeon of the terrorists, with families and friends accusing the federal government and security agencies of not doing anything tangible to free them.
On Friday, some relations of the abductees based in Kaduna State threatened to resist any attempt by the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) to resume the Abuja-Kaduna train services without rescuing their loved ones.
The terror attack also left eight persons dead at the scene, two others died in the hospital from gunshot injuries sustained, and with several others still nursing their wounds in hospital.
The terrorists had few days ago released a two-minute video, showing scores of abductees sitting in a forest, including men, women and children. Behind them was a group of gunmen standing in a line.
One of the abductees said in Hausa: “It is only us that know the dire situation we are in, there are women and children here; there are aged people with health challenges.”
In the video, the terrorists said the government knew what they wanted, threatening to kill those in custody if their demands were not met.
The video clearly showed the abductees in anguish. Some of them are believed to be carrying bullet wounds. They are being traumatised in a forest, amid mosquitos, hash conditions and many other dangers.
There is also a pregnant woman and some children with the terrorists in the very harsh environment.
Sources said the abductees were made to trek for five days, resting intermittently in transit camps, before they arrived at the main camp of the attackers around Shiroro Local Government Area in Niger State.
The released Managing Director of the Bank of Agriculture, BOA, Alwan Hassan, while recounting his ordeal a few days back, said 41 women, 22 men, 5 kids were with the terrorists.
The federal government had assured that it would do everything necessary to ensure the release of those still being held hostage but families and friends of the victims said they had not seen anything concrete being done in this direction.
The families, who said the federal government and security agencies had not deemed it fit to get in touch with them, are pleading with the terrorists to allow them negotiate the release of their relations.
One of the abducted family members, Aliyu Mohammed, who spoke in Abuja last Thursday, begged the terrorists to give room for families to negotiate the release of their loved ones.
Mohammed said: “It is the families, and not the government, that will bear the brunt should anything untoward happen to the abductees.”
Also last week, some of the victims’ families staged a peaceful protest at the Radio House in Abuja, with placards appealing to the federal government to do more in ensuring that they are released.
Aliyu Mahmud, a relative of a seven-month pregnant woman, had said: “I have my sister who is seven months pregnant with her husband. Words cannot explain what they are going through and what we are going through. Please, the government should do the needful and let this come to an end as soon as possible.
“They should try as much as possible to reach out to the perpetrators and rescue our loved ones. There are children there, pregnant women, the sick, the aged and only God knows what they are going through.
“Whatever we do, we think of them. When we eat, we think of them. When we sleep, anything we do, we think of them. We are pleading with the government to please do the needful so that this situation will come to an end as soon as possible.”
Another protester, Aminu Uthman, said: “My immediate younger brother and his wife are among the victims. It is a nightmare and the most difficult days I have had in my life. I cannot sleep or eat. A lot of things are going wrong.
“The bandits called only once and they gave him the phone to speak to us. They are yet to make any request but they called to say he is with them. We voted for this government because of insecurity. We had the trust that they would address insecurity. This protest is not for the family members alone; it is for Nigerians generally. This thing can happen to anybody.”
Some other relatives of the kidnapped victims also met in Kaduna early in the week and accused the federal government of insensitivity towards the plight of the abductees.
Dr. Abdulfatai Jimoh, who led and spoke on behalf of the kidnapped relatives, said they were yet to establish contact with their loved ones or even the hoodlums since the incident on March 28, 2022.
He said: “It is better for the government to go into negotiation with the terrorists as they have demanded to secure the release of our loved ones alive.
“Since this incident happened, we expected that by now, the government, the Nigerian Railway Corporation and the Federal Ministry of Transportation are supposed to have identified relatives of the victims to tell us what effort they are making or not to rescue our loved ones unhurt.
“In fact, the primary duty of any government is to protect the lives and property of citizens. We believe our government can do it and it’s capable of doing it. Until a few days ago we had been expecting telephone calls from the abductors because that’s what they promised us but when we saw the video, they made it very clear that they want to discuss with the government; that they have something with the government.
“We don’t know what they want from the government. But it’s now an opportunity and a window for the government to rescue our loved ones by opening a channel of communication with them (terrorists). This is not out of place. It is done everywhere in the world.
“Even the US, Israel and the most powerful nations of the world, do negotiate when they have issues like this to preserve the lives of their citizens. This, we know our government can do and we are appealing to them to do it. We don’t know what is between them but it is something that can be resolved in the interest of the lives of Nigerian citizens. Life is very sacred even if it is one life that’s involved.
“We are appealing to the Nigerian government to do everything within its powers and it is something that’s not beyond the government to do. We are appealing to them to come out to open a channel of discussion with the bandits and get our loved ones out as quickly as possible.
“We have been in serious anguish in the past 15 days. Many of us have not been sleeping, we have not been sleeping. We are like living corpses.”
No fewer than 362 passengers were onboard the train at the time terrorists struck on March 28.
Bennett Oghifo in Lagos and John Shiklam in Kaduna
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