The abductors of two Kogi State University, Kabba (KSUK) students have demanded a ₦50 million ransom for their release.
The students were kidnapped last Friday at the same location and on the same day the Caretaker Chairman of Kabba/Bunu Council area, Dare Michael, and his three aides were abducted.
While Chairman Michael was released due to his poor health, which prevented him from keeping up with the abductors, the other three aides and the two students remain in captivity. The kidnappers initially demanded ₦100 million for the chairman’s aides and have now asked for ₦50 million for the release of the students.
Shadrach Babalola, the father of one of the kidnapped students, Isaac Babalola, said his son and his friend, Joel Bamiyo, both from the Public Administration Department, have been held for a week. Babalola expressed frustration with the kidnappers’ rigid demands, stating, “Anytime they (kidnappers) call and ask for ₦50 million and we tell them we don’t have such an amount, they tell us we are not serious about the lives of our wards. The last time they called and we told them what we could afford, they told us point blank to take the money and buy Maggi to make soup for ourselves.”
Babalola has urged the state government to intervene and help secure the release of their children, stressing that the families have been living in fear since the incident.
Meanwhile, the Kogi State Police Command has stated they were unaware that students were among those abducted. Kogi State Police Public Relations Officer, SP William Aya, expressed surprise that the parents of the students had not made a formal report to security operatives.
Additionally, the institution has yet to release an official statement regarding the abduction of its students. The institution’s Public Relations Officer, Tade Oshaloto, declined to comment on the matter when contacted.
