By Matthew Otabe
Twenty prospective National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members abducted while travelling from Oyo State to their orientation camps in Abia State have regained their freedom after spending seven days in captivity.
The graduates were kidnapped last Thursday along the Owerri-Onitsha Road in Umunoha, Imo State, after gunmen attacked two buses conveying them from Ibadan.
The victims were reportedly on their way to their respective NYSC orientation camps when the assailants intercepted the buses and took all 20 prospective corps members hostage.
Their abduction triggered anxiety among their families and renewed concerns over the safety of young Nigerians travelling across the country to participate in the mandatory national service programme.
Ransom reduced from N1bn to N100m
The kidnappers initially demanded N50 million for each victim, amounting to N1 billion for the 20 prospective corps members.
The demand was later reduced to N5 million per victim, bringing the total ransom to N100 million.
It was not immediately clear whether any ransom was paid or the circumstances surrounding the eventual release of the victims.
Victims receive medical attention following their release, the 20 prospective corps members were taken to the Department of State Services (DSS) Hospital in Owerri, where they are receiving medical attention.
They are being monitored by medical personnel as they recover from their ordeal.
The NYSC Director-General, Brigadier-General Olakunle Oluseye Nafiu, visited the rescued victims at the facility.
He was accompanied by the Imo State Commissioner of Police, the Director of the Department of State Services and the Commander of the 34 Artillery Brigade, Imo State.
During the visit, Nafiu interacted with the victims, assessed their condition and addressed the prospective corps members.
The release was also confirmed on Wednesday by the Managing Director of Uko Akwa Ibom Motors Nigeria Limited, Isiah Akpan.
The development brings to an end the seven-day ordeal of the graduates, who were travelling from Ibadan to Abia State to commence their NYSC orientation activities when they were abducted.
Details of their release, including whether security agencies arrested any of the suspected kidnappers, were not immediately available.
The incident has once again raised concerns over the security of major inter-state routes used by prospective corps members and other travellers, particularly young graduates travelling to different parts of the country for the NYSC programme.
