…NUJ Reacts
Suspected bandits have kidnapped two journalists and their families in Danhonu community, Chikun Local Government Area of Kaduna State.
This is even as Nigerian Union Journalists calls on government at all level to ensure the safe return of the abductees and their family.
The victims, Alhaji AbdulGafar Alabelewe and AbdulRaheem Aodu, who are correspondents for The Nation and Blueprint Newspapers, respectively, in Kaduna State, were abducted when the bandits attacked the community on Saturday night.
Alabelewe, who is the current chairman of the Correspondents’ Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Kaduna State Council, was taken alongside his wife and two children.
Aodu and his wife were also kidnapped, leaving behind their sick daughter.
According to a family member of one of the victims, Taofeeq Olayemi, the bandits stormed the community at about 10:30 pm, shooting sporadically before the abduction.
The bandits initially took Alabelewe, his wife, three children, and a guest, but later released the girl and one of the children, the source told Daily Trust.
“They entered Abdulgafar’s house through the fence.
“They went straight into his bedroom and picked him, his wife and two of their kids and left immediately, after which the vigilantes arrived and started shooting into the air,” he added.
Reacting to the incident, the Kaduna State Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists condemned the abduction of its members in a joint statement issued by the Council’s Chairman Asma’u Halilu and the Secretary, Gambo Sanga, issued in Kaduna on Sunday.
The statement indicated that the NUJ received with shock, the brazen and barbaric attack by suspected kidnappers.
It stated, “The attack resulted in the abduction of the Kaduna State Correspondents of The Nation Newspaper and the Blue Newspaper, alongside their families last night at their residences in Danhono area, a Kaduna suburb, in Chikun LGA. We strongly condemn the ugly incident and appeal to the security agencies in the state to swing into action with a view to rescuing the journalists and their families from the kidnappers’ den.”
The statement expressed dismay at the abduction of the journalists alongside their wives and children.
It added, “We implore the government at all levels to intensify efforts towards guaranteeing the security of lives and property of the citizens at all times. The ugly phenomenon of kidnapping in Kaduna and environs is now resurfacing and must be checked to avert the experiences of the recent past. The Kaduna State Council of NUJ, however, enjoined all practising journalists in the state to be vigilant in their daily activities while also praying for the safe return of their abducted colleagues and their families.”
