A Deputy Director at the National Assembly Commission, Michael Adesiyan, on Tuesday, recounted his near-death experience in the hideout of bandits.
Adesiyan was abducted from his Chikakore residence in Kubwa, a suburb in the nation’s capital alongside his wife on January 26th, 2025 before he was rescued on April 7.
The civil servant narrated his ordeal to journalists at National Counter-Terrorism Centre, Abuja, when fresh 60 kidnapped victims, who were rescued by the security forces were presented to the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu.
Adesiyan called on the federal government to immediately look for a way to disarm the criminals and educate them, and possibly reintegrate them back to the society, adding that the bandits don’t know what they are doing.
According to him, his abductors were between the ages of 17 and 20, and they are stark illiterates who were not aware of what they were doing, and cannot even count N1 million let alone hundreds of millions they were asking as ransom.
He specifically said they were chained for 32 days he spent in the abductors’ den, adding that they killed his wife in his presence.
“I want to thank the government for rescuing us. I was chained for 32 days. I want to advise that the government should find away to disarm or arrest them (bandits), instead of confronting them.
“They can send them to school. Some cannot even count one million. They are stark illiterates. They are young people of ages 17 and 21. They don’t know what they are doing.
“So if they can bring them out, if they want to learn work (apprenticeship), they can let them do, retrain them, reorientate them, that they can be useful to themselves.
“My advice is to, instead of killing them, arrest them, reorientate them. If you want to educate them, they can then work. That’s my advice,” he said.
When asked why they were in a rush to tell their family members to pay ransom, he said, “When they kill someone in your presence you would give them anything they want.
“For instance they killed my wife in my presence. If they request for your head in that situation, you will give it to them.”
On his part, Ishaya Kuka, a brother to Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Rev. Fr. Matthew Kukah, said they suffered a lot in the hands of their abductors.
Kuka’s brother, who was also among the 60 rescued victims received by Ribadu and Minister of Defence, while sharing his experience said he never knew that he would still see the world again.
“Thank God for what we did yesterday. Frankly speaking, I was already out of my mind that I’m not going to see this world again due to how they were treating us in the bush.
“In the bush, we suffered too much. They used to chain us, two of us. If you are going to s*it, you move with the other one. If you are going to piss, you move together.”
He stated that they pressure people into paying ransom.
He said, “About this money, people are saying that they are not supposed to be giving money. It’s because of pressure that they are putting, if they beat you in the bush, it will make you say you give money.
“Because if they discover that you don’t want to open your mouth and say you will give money, they will kill you. They will beat you. So, the pressure will be too much and you would have to give. ”
He appreciated the FG for rescuing them.
He said, “It is because of the federal government we are out, if not, up till now, we will still be in the bush. So, we thank you very much for what you have done to us. God bless, thanks.”
Earlier, while giving a breakdown, the Coordinator, National Counter-Terrorism Centre, Maj. Gen Adamu Laka said the victims comprising 35 males and 25 females, were rescued on Monday April 7, by troops of 1 Division of the Nigerian Army, in a coordinated operation supported by other security and intelligence agencies
