By: Felix Ikpotor
Today, Tuesday, September 29, 2020, makes it exactly 17 days after four persons in Bonny Local Government Area of Rivers State were abducted by yet to be identified gunmen after they attended a burial in the area.
The victims are; Thompson Allison, Daniel Hart, Theophilus Ibiama and Sunny Hart. They were kidnapped at Finiapiri-Ama (Amauda) in Banigo Isile-Ogono .
Those who escaped the attack on September 12, 2020 includes, Member, Rivers State House of Assembly, Abinye Pepple, Chairman, Bonny LGA, David Irimagha, and Deputy Leader, Bonny Legislative Assembly, Dipinye Jumbo.
Meanwhile, anxieties are rife as no word has been heard from the state governor, Chief Nyesom Wike till this moment despite the repeated cries from relatives of the victims and indigenes of the area for their safe and immediate release.
The social media community, the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC), the Bonny Improvement Association (BIA), the Obolo Youth Coalition (OYC) and other well-meaning groups and individuals have, however, sustained the clamour for the release of the abductees.
Port Harcourt Spectator recalls that a day after the incident took place, the council chairman, Eugene Irimagha came on air to say the council and security agencies were synergizing on how to safely release the victims and urged the people to remain calm. But till the time of this report, nothing concrete seems to have been done to that effect.
Chairman of the Port Harcourt Branch of the Bonny Improvemet Association, Professor Sodienye Abere in a statement called for safe concerted effort in securing the release of the victims.
“We are talking of kidnapping now, for over two weeks our people have been kidnapped without any word from the kidnappers. What if they are coming into the town in the night to spy on us and know where to go and what to do? And with the curfew there is no way our people will be able to monitor these things.”
He also used the opportunity to call on the Governor and Chairman of Bonny LGA, David Irimagha to prioritize the rescue and safe return of the Banigo 4 to their beleaguered families, stressing that they should not be left to the mercy of their kidnappers, appealing that whatever needs to be done to secure their freedom should be done.
