Latest on prospective corps members wey armed men kidnap for Imo State
Wia dis foto come from, KOLA SULAIMON/AFP via Getty Images
Di race to rescue di prospective National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members wey suspected armed men kidnap as dem dey travel from Ibadan, Oyo State go dia NYSC orientation camps for Abia and Akwa Ibom States on Thursday, 1 October dey on.
Police for Imo State wey give update on di mata tok say, dem don locate one camp wia armed men dey hold at least 19 prospective corps members.
Di state commissioner of police Audu Bosso tok say na drones dem use locate di camp, but security forces neva fit move in becos believe dey say, di jaguda pipo plant explosives around di area.
Oga Bosso add say police dey use bulldozers and armoured vehicles to prepare for rescue operation.
Dis latest informate dey come afta tori say di kidnappers don contact families of di victims for ransom payment.
Dis na wetin we know about di kidnap and wetin authorities don tok.
Who be di kidnapped corps members?
Authorities neva release di identities of di prospective corps members wey suspected armed men abduct along Owerri-Onitsha Road, by Umunoha as dem dey travel go dia orientation camps for Abia and Akwa Ibom States.
Also, di actual figure of pipo dem kidnap neva dey clear. But, according to tori pipo, di suspected gunmen kidnap reach 20 pipo from two buses wey bin dey carry di prospective corps members plus oda passengers from Ibadan.
End of Di one wey oda users dey read well well
Police say dem plus oda security agencies don recover di buses and dem rescue 10 victims for di scene. E no dey clear if di victims dem rescue be corpers.
However, police make am clear say dem neva verify di exact number of persons abducted and dem go make am public once dem confam.
Who kidnap di corpers and wia dem dey?
According to Imo State police, di incident hapun at about 0630hrs on 1st October, along di Owerri-Onitsha Road, by Umunoha. Suspected gunmen bin attack two buses wey carry di prospective NYSC corps members plus oda passengers.
Di corpers bin dey go dia respective NYSC orientation camps for Abia and Akwa Ibom States wen di attack hapun.
Imo commissioner of police say operatives don track di group wey carry out di kidnapping to one location for inside bush, but dem no fit advance go di camp becos intelligence show say dem surround di place wit mines.
E neva dey clear di group wey abduct di corps members plus di oda passengers for di south east region, but e dey come few weeks afta di Abia State Police Command say dem don recova twenty-eight (28) human skulls and human bones from one forest for di state.
Di separatist violence for south-east Nigeria get im root for di calls for Biafran independence wey date back nearly 60 years to di brutal civil war wia more dan one million pipo bin kpai.
Even though di Nigerian govment bin crush dat rebellion, demands for independent state for di Igbo pipo for dat region still dey on as some Igbos feel say dem dey marginalised by di Nigerian state.
Di Indigenous People of Biafra (Ipob), led by Nnamdi Kanu, na one of di groups wey dey promote dat call for secession.
For 2009, Kanu launch Radio Biafra wey dey broadcast separatist messages to Nigeria from London. As govment declare Ipob a terrorist organisation for 2017 - three years later, Kanu create one armed wing- di Eastern Security Network (ESN).
Plenty splinter groups don arise since and govment forces blame dem for arson, kidnappings and killing of civilians and security personnel for di five states across di south-east.
ESN bin control several towns for Imo and Anambra States wia dem bin force thousands of pipo to run from dia homes.
Wetin authorities dey tok?
Authorities say police operatives bin track di group go one location inside bush but dem no fit advance into di camp becos intelligence tell dem say e dey mined wit explosives.
"Yesterday we dey inside di bush; we trail dem reach one particular location. But at dat point in time, we no fit move go wia di coordinates show us say dem dey," e tok.
Di commissioner tok say drone surveillance don help operatives pinpoint di location, but di presence of improvised explosive devices pose a challenge to di rescue operation.
"Di drone actually show us exactly dia location. But our predicament na say wit di intel we get, di camp dey mined wit IEDs," Bosso tok.
Dis kain tin don hapun bifor?
Dis no be di first time wey armed men go kidnap corps members for Nigeria.
August 2025: tori bin break say jaguda pipo bin kidnap 15 corps members wey dey return from orientation camp for Kolokuma/Opokuma LGA, Bayelsa state.
Di young graduates bin dey travel from Bayelsa state, NYSC orientation camp to Abuja wen di gunmen stop dia vehicles and kidnap dem plus oda passengers
Di Nigeria police bin confam say di incident hapun for Aloma-Egane expressway for Ofu LGA of Kogi state and dem dey work wit oda security operatives to rescue di victims from di suspected kidnappers.
One corps member wey narrate im ordeal wen e dey captivity wit di kidnappers, tok say jaguda pipo threaten den inside di bush make dem no try move without dia permission or else dem go shoot di pesin.
However, on 30 August, few weeks afta dia abduction, Nigeria govment confam say security operatives don rescue dem and six oda civilians wey dem kidnap.
August 2023: gunmen bin kidnap eight corps members for Zamfara State. Di corpers bin dey travel from Akwa Ibom State go Sokoto State, for di one-year compulsory national service service, wen jaguda pipo gbab dem.
For August 2024, di Director General of di National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), Major General Yusha'u Ahmed bin announce say dem don rescue all di eight prospective corps members wey dem abduct along Funtua-Gusua road for Zamfara state on 17 August, 2023.
Di NYSC DG clear am say security operatives don rescue some of di victims since 2023, but dem rescue di last victim on Thursday, 21 August 2024.
May 2023: Jaguda pipo kidnap at least five corps members for Emuoha Local Government Area of Rivers State on May 16. Di corps members bin dey return from dia orientation camp for Ondo State wen armed men abduct dem for di Rumuji axis of di East-West Road for Emohua.
Wetin be NYSC?
Di National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) na one compulsory one-year programme for most Nigerian university and polytechnic graduates.
Dem dey post participants, wey dey known as corps members go different parts of di kontri to work and take part in community service, also to foster a sense of national unity.
Kidnapping for ransom na one major security problem for Nigeria, wey involve both criminal gangs and armed groups.
Di abduction for Imo State don cause widespread concern, as mass kidnappings dey less common in southern Nigeria pass for some parts of di north.
Paying ransoms dey illegal and authorities don repeatedly warn families against di payment, but relatives of kidnapped pipo often dey under pressure to do so to secure dia release.
Di latest abduction highlight di risks wey young pipo wey dey travel across Nigeria to do dia national youth service dey face and e don renew calls for reforms.
