Odita Sunday 
NYSC abductees: HURIWA demands truth over release, asks ‘Were they rescued or released?’
By Odita Sunday
The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has demanded full disclosure from security agencies over the circumstances surrounding the release of 20 prospective National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members abducted in Imo State, asking whether the victims were rescued by security forces or released following negotiations.
HURIWA, in a statement signed by its National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Nnadozie Onwubiko, on Thursday, commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the Armed Forces, Department of State Services (DSS), Nigeria Police Force and other security personnel involved in securing the freedom of the victims.
The group described the safe return of the young Nigerians as a welcome development, praising what it called the apparent coordination and intelligence sharing among the security agencies.
However, HURIWA said the circumstances surrounding the release remained unclear and Nigerians deserved a factual account of what happened during the operation.
“Were the 20 prospective corps members actually rescued by the security forces, or were they released after the payment of ransom?” the group asked.
HURIWA said the question had become necessary because no suspected kidnapper had reportedly been arrested, captured or neutralised in connection with the abduction.
The organisation recalled that the Imo State Police Command had earlier disclosed that its operatives traced the kidnappers’ hideout through drone surveillance but encountered difficulties accessing the location after discovering that the area had reportedly been planted with improvised explosive devices.
It said additional equipment, including bulldozers and armoured personnel carriers, was subsequently deployed to facilitate access to the location.
HURIWA said Nigerians had, however, not been told what happened afterwards or how the hostages eventually regained their freedom.
“If this was a successful military and security rescue operation, HURIWA commends the personnel involved and demands that Nigerians be given a clear account of how the operation was conducted, without compromising legitimate operational security,” the statement said.
“But if the victims were released following negotiations or payment of ransom, Nigerians also deserve to know the truth.”
The group stressed that it was not opposed to negotiations where necessary to preserve the lives of abducted citizens, arguing that human life remained priceless.
“There is absolutely nothing wrong with acknowledging that abducted citizens were released through negotiations where necessary to preserve their lives. Human life is priceless,” HURIWA said.
“What is unacceptable is for government and security authorities to present one narrative to Nigerians while concealing material facts about how citizens were actually freed.”
The organisation said Nigerians were not asking security agencies to reveal operational secrets but wanted clarity on the circumstances surrounding a major security operation.
HURIWA consequently asked whether the kidnappers were engaged in negotiations, whether any ransom was paid, who negotiated with the abductors, whether any suspects were identified or arrested and whether the kidnappers escaped before security forces reached their hideout.
“If the security agencies conducted a successful rescue operation, where are the rescued victims’ abductors?” the group asked.
“What kind of rescue operation ends with the victims returning safely but leaves the perpetrators completely untouched?”
HURIWA said the questions were particularly important because the abductors reportedly initially demanded N50 million for each victim, amounting to N1 billion, before reducing the demand to N5 million per person, or N100 million for the 20 victims.
The organisation, however, stressed that it was not accusing any government agency of paying ransom.
“HURIWA is not accusing any government agency of paying ransom. We are demanding clarification because the circumstances of the release remain unclear,” it said.
The group also commended the intervention of the Federal Government, Imo and Oyo State governments, NYSC authorities and the security agencies involved in the effort to secure the victims’ freedom.
It praised the parents and families of the prospective corps members for their patience during the seven days of uncertainty and welcomed the decision to place the rescued victims under medical care at the DSS Hospital in Owerri.
HURIWA urged the authorities to provide the victims with comprehensive medical and psychological support, stressing that their safe return should not mark the end of accountability.
“The government must pursue the perpetrators,” the group said.
“The kidnappers must be identified, tracked, arrested and prosecuted.”
It further called for sustained operations against forests and criminal hideouts used by kidnappers, arguing that such locations should not remain safe havens after abducted Nigerians had been freed.
“Rescuing victims is only half of the job. Bringing their abductors to justice is the other half,” HURIWA said.
The organisation called on security agencies to provide Nigerians with a factual account of the operation while commending officers who genuinely risked their lives to secure the freedom of the victims.
“But we equally insist that the Nigerian people must not be sold a dummy about the circumstances of their release,” it said.
“If they were rescued, let the authorities tell Nigerians how they were rescued.
“If they were released after negotiations, let the authorities say so.
“If ransom was paid, Nigerians deserve an explanation within the limits of operational security.”
HURIWA said the lives of the victims and the truth about how they were freed were both important, insisting that accountability should not be sacrificed in the name of public relations.
“The lives of the victims matter. The truth also matters. And accountability must not be sacrificed in the name of public relations,” the group said.
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