One month after, abducted female lecturer still in captivity

Family members and colleagues of Christie O. Agbulu, a female lecturer at the Federal University of Agriculture, Makurdi (UAM), are still in dilemma over continued stay in captivity nearly a month after she was abducted. Agbulu, a lecturer I in the Department of Biological Sciences at the university was abducted in Lokoja, the Kogi State […]

Family members and colleagues of Christie O. Agbulu, a female lecturer at the Federal University of Agriculture, Makurdi (UAM), are still in dilemma over continued stay in captivity nearly a month after she was abducted.

Agbulu, a lecturer I in the Department of Biological Sciences at the university was abducted in Lokoja, the Kogi State capital on November 26 while on a personal visit to the state.

She had boarded a bus from Makurdi to Lokoja, then took a motorcycle to complete her journey. But the motorcyclist whisked her to an a yet-to-be-identified kidnappers’ den.

The kidnappers used her ATM to withdraw N100,000 paid into her account. As her family tried to raise a balance of N50,000 for her ransom, her abductors cut off all communications, fuelling anxiety about her whereabouts.

Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), UAM held a press conference in Lokoja to solicit “concerted efforts” to secure Agbulu’s release.

UAM ASUU’s acting chairperson, Dr Bemgba Anjembe, expressed worries that their colleague was yet to be freed after about 17 days in captivity despite reassurances from the police about her rescue.

The chairperson who was represented at the news briefing by the union’s secretary, Dr Ishaq Eneji, explained that the abductors had earlier demanded for N150,000 ransoms of which N100,000 was paid to them.

“Today is more than two weeks after we first came to Lokoja in search of our colleague and there is no information about her whereabouts.

“We were constrained to petition the Inspector General of police on 5th December 2016 over this matter to which no response has been received.

“We therefore appeal to the security agencies and the governor of Kogi State who is the chief security officer of the state to do everything possible to rescue our colleague within the shortest possible time”, he said.

He expressed concerns that the university authority has been nonchalant about making any efforts towards the release of the staff ever since she was abducted in Lokoja.

He said that ASUU wrote the university management about the plight of its colleague but that no action was taken.

When contacted, the Head of Information and Public Relations Unit of the university, Rosemary Waku, said she had no official information about the abducted lecturer.

“I only read about the incident in the papers. I have never seen any official statement in the university circle.

According to her, the lecturer was on a personal visit to Lokoja and not official assignment.

She equally said she was not aware that the ASUU wrote to the university management on the matter.

Meanwhile, the Kogi State Police Command said it has not relented on the matter, noting that efforts are still ongoing to secure release of the abducted lecturer.

State’s Commissioner of Police, Abdullahi Chafe told Daily Trust on Saturday that the Command has sought for tracking devices from its headquarters in Abuja to be deployed in tracking the location of the kidnappers.

“We are also collaborating with the Department of State Services and other sister security agencies in the state in a bid to secure her. We urge the family members and ASUU to be patient with us,” he said.

According to him, the thick forest vegetative cover and mountainous terrain of the state has made search and rescue of kidnap victims a herculean task.

“The issue is that before we get the information that someone is kidnapped, the abductors had already entered the bush with the victim and the terrain is not favourable to us, being hilly and covered with thick vegetation.

“Another snag is that the kidnappers keep shifting from one location to another. Even when you have an analysis from the tracking device about their location, before you know it, they have moved from there,” he said.

The CP urged family members of the abducted lecturer to furnish them with any relevant information at their disposal which would be of help to police in efforts to rescue the victim.