Before leaving office, Governor Nasir El-Rufai received a passionate request from the Kaduna State chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) to ensure the safe return of 16 worshipers from Bege Baptist Church in Madala near Buruku in the Chikun Local Government Area who were kidnapped by bandits three weeks ago.
It was said that if the current state government falls, the new administration should make it a top priority to facilitate the worshipers’ swift and safe return to their captors.
Rev. John Joseph Hayab, the state chairman of CAN, while speaking to reporters in Kaduna on Sunday, said, “Our appeal is either the outgoing state government to use this last 24 hours to rescue our people and let them come back home, but if they failed then our appeal is to the new coming state government to come in with a new leaf of life and ensure that these people do not last another 48 hours in the hands of their abductors. Let it be their first primary assignment of the new government in the state to deliver the worshippers of Bege Baptist Church Madala.”
He added, “We cannot have a government and this evil will go on unchecked. We cannot have a government and citizens will suffer this kind of treatment and pain in the hands of evil people and the government is not doing anything to save the people.”
“Sixteen of the worshippers are still with the bandits, all efforts to get the bandits to release them have not yielded any fruit. As l speak to you this morning, the bandits are still making huge demands, these poor villagers do not have the money to get these people out, the bandits are demanding for motorcycles, money, where will these people have such things to give to the bandits?” He asked.
He lamented that the poor villagers could not go to farm in the year following the insecurity and their children, wives and husbands are kept in the bush while nobody is saying anything.
He further lamented that those in power are busy thinking of what to grab next, stressing that nobody has shown concern on how to get the affected people out from their abductors.
He explained, “The other 24 abducted worshippers that came back was not because anybody paid money for them, some were released by the bandits because they were weak and could not continue to travel, some the bandits thought they were dead and abandoned them and they came back home.”
Rev. Hayab stated that he had communication with the villagers and their cry is how to raise funds to meet the demands of the bandits.
