The recently abducted chairman of Ukum Local Government Area in Benue State, Rev. Gideon Haanongon, has shared the harrowing details of his ordeal following his release on Wednesday.
The incident, previously reported by IgbereTV, involved the kidnapping of the local government chair, his driver, police orderly, and personal assistant as they were en route to the burial of Ter Katsina-Ala, Chief Benjamin Fezaanga Wonbo, last Saturday.
Approximately five days into captivity, a family source revealed that the kidnappers had demanded a ransom of N50 million. In a statement to journalists from Makurdi, the state capital, the released chairman disclosed that the relentless pressure exerted by military personnel played a pivotal role in securing his release and that of his personal assistant.
Addressing the media at the 72 Battalion in Makurdi on Thursday, the chairman recounted the circumstances surrounding his abduction. He explained that, on the day of the incident, he was en route to the burial of a traditional ruler in Katsina-Ala when he encountered a group of armed individuals firing indiscriminately, resulting in the tragic loss of life.
He said, “At that point, I told my driver to stop the car and they took us (himself and personal assistant) straight into the bush. They covered my face throughout the period of my captivity. I did not know when it was daytime or night. They kept us inside a thatched house without air.
“Each day, the soldiers would come shooting but they manoeuvred their way through a bush path and hid us inside a river. The soldiers destroyed their camps and they kept moving us to another place.
“They did not feed me because they did not have food themselves to eat. I was urinating often so they gave me banana leaves and it stopped.
“At a point, they told me that these soldiers were disturbing them because of me and that the governor had appealed to them to release me and he would forgive them.
“They said I should tell the governor to keep to his words and get them out of the bush. So, at about 8pm on Wednesday, we crossed a stream and trekked a very long distance almost like from Makurdi to Abinsi and they removed the blindfold and asked me to take a path that leads to Zaki-Biam.
“But I recognised the village which is Tse Wombo in Katsina-Ala because my daughter is married there.
“I must appreciate immensely the efforts of the military because it was their persistent pressure that made the kidnappers to release me. Also, the Special Adviser to Governor Hyacinth Alia on Security, Lt. Col. Alexander Ashungu (retd.), played a significant role in my release.”
