The agony for one family has doubled as they appeal for the rescue of their sister, a National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) member, who was abducted in Kogi State. This comes just months after they mourned the loss of their mother. The plea comes from Chidinma, who shared her distress on Instagram, highlighting the desperate situation of families struggling to meet the kidnappers’ demands.

Chidinma’s sister was travelling from Bayelsa State, where she completed her three-week NYSC orientation camp, towards Abuja before heading to Niger State for her Place of Primary Assignment (PPA). The journey turned tragic when the vehicle she was travelling in was attacked by armed men along the Aloma–Egane Expressway in Ofu Local Government Area of Kogi State. The driver of the bus was reportedly killed in the attack, and Chidinma’s sister, along with other corps members, was taken into the forest.

Speaking to journalists, Chidinma expressed frustration with the slow pace of rescue efforts. She stated that the families are being pressured for ransom, with demands they cannot afford. “They are not doing anything. They keep telling us that they are on it,” she lamented, adding, “Those children are in the forest suffering, the kidnappers kept asking for what we cannot afford.” She insisted that reports claiming some corps members had been rescued were false, asserting her sister was still in captivity.

The Kogi State Police Command, however, confirmed that an operation involving a joint security team, led by the Divisional Police Officer in Ofu, resulted in the rescue of 11 victims. The victims, including the drivers of two buses reportedly ambushed by armed hoodlums emerging from the bush, were identified as mostly NYSC members travelling from Bayelsa to Abuja. The police recovered two abandoned vehicles, a white Hummer bus from Peace Mass Transit and an 18-seater yellow bus, at the scene before launching a search operation.

According to the police spokesperson, ASP Salisu Oyiza Afusat, the abduction occurred around 4:40 PM near the Ogene Zaria/Onicha-Igo Junction. The rescued victims were debriefed and allowed to continue their journey. The command stated that the joint security operation to rescue any remaining victims and apprehend the perpetrators is ongoing, with available resources deployed to secure the area.

Despite the police confirmation of a rescue, Chidinma remains unconvinced and pleads for broader intervention. She has called on the Federal Government, the NYSC, the Nigerian police, the Air Force, and even the United Nations to step in. “My sister will not go like that, we just lost our mum few months back, and now my sister. Nigerians should come to our rescue,” she pleaded, expressing a deep-seated fear of losing another family member. She also accused the NYSC of not providing her family with sufficient information regarding the rescue efforts.