The abduction of the Abuja-Kaduna train passengers is causing their families agony. The families are desperately waiting for their return, SOLOMON ODENIYI writes
It has been over a month of excruciating pain for the families of passengers abducted in the Kaduna-Abuja train attack.
The ill-fated incident, which occurred on March 28, left no fewer than eight dead, 26 injured while over 160 passengers according to the Nigerian Railway Corporation cannot be accounted for.
The families are struggling to cope without their loved ones who were taken hostage by a vicious and blood-thirsty terrorist group and held in a deadly forest.
The victims’ families have had their hearts in their mouths considering the health conditions of those in captivity. Last week, a pregnant woman was delivered of a baby. Another, according to the family, was due for delivery among others in need of medical attention.
In a video first released by the terrorists, they claimed the government knew what they wanted, threatening to kill those in their custody if their demands were not met.
The PUNCH had reported that the terrorists were asking for the release of some of their commanders arrested by the military in various operations. Their demands have put the government at a fix.
Although the Managing Director of the Bank of Agriculture Alwan Hassan, was released after reportedly paying N100m ransom, our correspondent couldn’t confirm if the son of the Chairman, Northern Elders Forum, Ango Abdullahi, had been released as other families of those held hostage described the news as fake.
Many of the family members expressed concerns over the decision of the terrorists to leave their fate in the hands of the Federal Government
During a press briefing held at the National Human Rights Commission, a family member, Aliyu Mohammed, begged the terrorists to give room for families to negotiate the release of their loved ones.
Mohammed, who lamented that no government agency had reached out to them since the incident occurred, stated that the families would bear the brunt should anything untoward happen to them and not the government.
Mohammed said, “We are begging. We are pleading to the kidnappers to provide room for dialogue so we can negotiate the release of our loved ones.
“We are confused and most of the victims are in dire need of medical attention. For instance, there is a seven-month-old pregnant woman who is due for a Caesarean session.
“Her brother, who was shot, has an untreated bullet wound. We have toddlers and an 85- year- old woman who is diabetic and so many others.
“No government agency has reached out to us even though we have made attempts to see the right authorities.
“We are at a loss of what to do. The loss of these people is a personal loss to us, not the government.
“We are the ones that will feel the pain of not seeing them again. We are the ones to bear the burden of knowing we could’ve saved them, had we been given room to negotiate and get our loved ones out.
“We want to actively participate in ensuring their safety. Nothing is too small or too much to secure the lives of the victims.”
“We’ve been in trauma, can’t wait to have our loved ones back- Victims families.”
Idayat Yusuf, whose two sisters are among those abducted told our correspondent that her family had gone through a lot since the incident happened.
She added that she had yet to come to terms that the incident truly happened and her sisters were victims.
Yusuf said, “We are trying to be good. Don’t even remind me. I can’t believe that people started and ended their fast in the hands of kidnappers in a country that we have a government. We are heartbroken that no government official has so far visited the family since the unfortunate incident.
“I can’t believe this is happening. For how long would the government want to strategise to secure their release?”
Yusuf, who later burst into tears, asked how long would it take the government to rescue the victims and reunite them with their families.
“The last one month has been a traumatic one for us. How do you expect us to be fine when we have our loved ones in the hands of their kidnappers? I saw the pictures of my sisters which was released on social media, I felt very bad at the way they were looking . In fact, anytime I remember this incident, it ruins my day.”
Another family member, Kess Kessena also said the experience had been harrowing for his family, lamenting that the neither the NRC management nor the representative from the government had met them since the incident happened.
He said, “We don’t have a choice. Nobody is staying strong. It’s been very traumatic to every member of the family.
“The fake news is getting too much. They will give you hopes and dash it before you know it. Nothing has happened.
“Yesterday, the President ordered that the NRC to get in touch with the families of the victims but we have yet to get a call from anybody.
“We are hoping to get their calls or we go there ourselves to get updates. They have all our contacts. So if they have to discuss with us, we are not far. Since the incident occurred about a month ago, no government official has called us.”
NRC keeps mum on families allegations
The NRC when contacted to react on the allegations by the families of the passengers refused to comment.
Its spokesperson, Yakub Mahmood simply said , “No comment, we have issued a statement on that. “
Be patient, situation delicate, wisdom needed-Buhari
The President , Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd), while receiving some residents of the Federal Capital Territory called for more patience.
He said the issue was a delicate one , adding that terrorists were using those held hostage as human shields, adding that the rescue effort had taken this long because the military was working to rescue all hostages alive.
“They are using civilians as human shields, thereby making it difficult to confront them directly. Bandits and terrorists, unlike professional soldiers, don’t respect the rules of engagement; they don’t care about killing their hostages if they come under attack.
“It’s a delicate situation that requires wisdom, caution and also patience. Any rescue operation that results in the death of any hostage cannot be deemed a success.”
Release terrorists leaders not the best option – experts warn
Meanwhile, security experts have warned against releasing terrorists’ leaders in exchange of those held hostage, saying that doing so may spell doom for the country.
They rather suggested that the security operatives should embark on a special operation to rescue the victims.
A security expert, Timothy Avele, said the security operatives could use a special commando elite to stop the enclaves of the terrorists, using stealth, surprise and speed doctrine.
He said, “There’s only two options in situation like this for the government and security agencies to act on.
“First, if there’s enough actionable intelligence (exact location or locations where the victims are kept, how many terrorists guiding them, what are they armed with? etc) then the best option is to storm the place and rescue the hostages by special elite commando who may have done several rehearsal using a 3D replica hostage location. To be successful, the SSS (Stealth, Surprise and Speed) doctrine must be incorporated
“The second best option where there’s no actionable intelligence or the victims has been scattered in various locations or when it has been determined that the victims lives would be in grave danger through any other means (again this can only be determined by concrete Intelligence) is simply to negotiate with the terrorists and meet their demands.”
Another security expert, Jackson Ojo, said Nigerian government should use security apparatus and strategy to set Nigerians held in hostage free.
He said submitting and subjecting Nigeria to their dictate will spell security doom for us.
Ojo said, “In any situation where terrorists dictate to the government and the government in turn bows to the dictate of the terrorist, it will mark the end of that nation. For you to take to the dictate of your enemy, it simply means your enemy has overpowered you.
“But there is a question I want to ask, there was an American that was kidnapped in Maiduguri but Americans security came to Nigeria and rescued that person, that was a year or two ago. How did the Americans rescue him? How did they understand the terrain?
“Our security operatives should get intelligence of where they’re. They can be tracked with the phone calls they made with families. They should spray super-psychoactive substance there, this would temporarily incapacitate everyone in that vicinity. Rescue those you want to rescue while they are asleep, they can arrest the criminals. It is done in so many parts of the world.” ,,
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