Abductors who seized 19 graduates travelling from Ibadan, Oyo State, for their National Youth Service Corps orientation camps have demanded N950m for their release.

The victims were travelling in two buses when gunmen attacked them along the Owerri-Onitsha Road in Umunoha, Imo State, on Thursday.

The Managing Director of Uko Akwa Ibom Motors Nigeria Limited, Isiah Akpan, who confirmed the incident on Friday, said the gunmen demanded N50m for each of the victims.

He noted that occupants of the vehicles, owned by his company, were corps members heading to Abia and Akwa Ibom orientation camps.

It was gathered on Friday that the abductors contacted some of the victims’ families and demanded N50m for each person.

The demand heightened anxiety among families as security operatives continued efforts to locate the missing passengers.

Recounting how the incident happened, Akpan said the two buses left Bodija/Samonda Park in Ibadan on Wednesday but were delayed by traffic around Benin, Edo State.

According to him, the vehicles eventually reached Onitsha, Anambra State, late in the day.

He explained that they could not continue the journey because of the condition of the road, forcing the drivers and passengers to spend the night in Oba.

Akpan said the buses resumed their journey around 5 am on Thursday.

He said they had barely entered Imo State when gunmen emerged from the bush.

“They blocked the two vehicles and took 19 passengers, all corps members, into the bush,” he added.

Akpan noted that the drivers managed to escape and alerted security personnel at a nearby checkpoint, prompting the police and military to begin searching the area.

He, however, said the search operation was initially complicated when some villagers allegedly prevented security personnel from removing the abandoned buses from the scene.

According to him, the intervention delayed the movement of security personnel as they attempted to pursue the abductors.

The two buses were subsequently left at the scene, with passengers’ belongings scattered inside the vehicles.

The Imo State Police Command had on Thursday night said 10 victims were rescued.

In a statement on Friday, the Police Public Relations Officer, Henry Okoye, explained that security agencies were on the trail of the abductors and had launched a coordinated search for the remaining victims.

However, Okoye could not confirm if the rescued victims were among the abducted corps members.

Parents in panic

A parent of one of the victims, who did not want to be named for security reasons, told Saturday PUNCH that the abductors contacted her through her son’s phone and demanded N50m for his release.

“The kidnappers called with my son’s phone this morning (Friday) and demanded N50m for his release. The N50m is for only my son,” she said.

Another mother, who identified herself as Mrs Oladosu, whose daughter, Greatness, was travelling to Uyo, said the abductors briefly contacted the family through her daughter’s phone.

She said the family was able to see Greatness and other victims during a video call.

“They used my daughter’s number to call us. We saw her and other corps members sitting on the ground in the bush, crying. Where will petty traders get N50m? They are just going to serve Nigeria; why this punishment?” Oladosu lamented.

In a viral video obtained by Saturday PUNCH on Friday, Mrs Alimotu Akanke, the mother of another victim, Akande Farouq, said she had been tracking her son’s journey when the distress message arrived.

Farouq, who was posted to Abia State, according to his mother, managed to send a one-word message, “Kidnappers!”, to his family WhatsApp group before his telephone line went dead.

A manifest from the two affected vehicles listed 30 passengers, 15 in each bus, while two other vehicles operated by the same company and heading to Abia State escaped the attack.

Among those on the manifest were Akande Kehinde, Olaleye Mary, Oladosu Greatness, Obafunsho Rhoda, Abdulrof Anifat, Esther Oyede, Hassan Usman, Ayomide Isa, Mary Makinde, Azeez Adejoke and Abdulrazaq Anifat.

Friends launch social media campaigns for victims

Some purported friends of the abducted prospective NYSC members have taken to social media to seek support for their rescue.

One of the victims was identified as Precious Oladipupo, a graduate of Obafemi Awolowo University.

Writing on X, one Adebayo (@Adebayoakim1), solicited public support for the safe release of Wahab Ayandare, whom he claimed was also abducted in the same incident.

Another friend, Akinlabi Abayomi (@Mubiiiiin), appealed for help for another alleged victim, Oyindamola Adeoye.

Abayomi said the abductors had demanded N50m for her release. PUNCH

…As 2,101 Corps members sworn-in in Enugu State

Governor of Enugu State, Dr. Peter Mbah, has charged Nigerians with collectively building a nation that earns the patriotism of young people, while also making migration a choice, not an escape route.

Mbah spoke in Awgu during the swearing-in ceremony for the 2026 Batch C Stream of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members deployed to Enugu State.

He stressed that Nigeria’s extraordinary youth population could only become a demographic dividend if the nation creates the education, skills, jobs, enterprise and institutions that enable young Nigerians to convert their energy and talent into productivity and prosperity, hence the essence of the NYSC beyond experiencing other parts of Nigeria.

Governor of Enugu State, Dr. Peter Mbah (middle), poses for a photo with members of the National Youth Service Corps Batch ‘C’ 2026 during their swearing-in ceremony at Awgu, Enugu State, Friday.

“We often ask young Nigerians to be patriotic. But let us ask ourselves a more difficult question: How do we earn the patriotism of our young people if they feel excluded from their country’s promise?

“Patriotism must be cultivated by creating a country in which young people can see a future for themselves.

“We must provide quality education; create an enabling environment for enterprise; expand opportunities; make our institutions work.

“We must build a country where merit is rewarded, hard work has meaning and dreams do not have to be exported before they can become reality,” he said.

Mbah, however, urged the youth to never forget the demands patriotism makes of them, both in good and difficult times.

“Patriotism also demands something from you. It demands that, even when the country is imperfect, you refuse to give up on its possibilities; that you criticise what is wrong without abandoning what can be made right; that you do not merely ask: ‘What can Nigeria give me?’

“but also ask: ‘What can I give Nigeria?’

“Together, we can build a country where ‘japa’ is a choice, not an escape; where our young people can travel the world without feeling compelled to abandon home.

“If you are called upon to teach, teach as though Nigeria’s future were sitting before you – because it is. And when you encounter the difficulties, do not simply ask: ‘When will Nigeria change?’ Ask the more powerful question: ‘What can I do to change Nigeria?’ That is the question of citizenship,” he emphasised.

He assured them of their welfare, safety and comfort in Enugu State, reminding them that Enugu is a state rich in cosmopolitan history, and where every citizen could attain any height he or she is capable of.

“The Government of Enugu State will continue to work with the NYSC authorities to provide a conducive, secure and supportive environment for your service. We will pay particular attention to your welfare, safety and the conditions under which you discharge your responsibilities across the state.

“But, importantly, note that you are not strangers in Enugu. Our history offers remarkable testimony. When Enugu was elevated to municipal status in 1952, Mallam Umaru Altine, a Fulani man from Sokoto, became its first Mayor.

“It tells us that in Enugu, where you come from need not determine how far you can go; that belonging is not always about birthplace; that citizenship is also about contribution,” he assured them.

Speaking earlier, the NYSC State Coordinator, Mrs. Oluwakemi Awolola, on behalf of the Director-General of the agency, Brigadier-General Olakunle Nafiu, said a total of 2,101 corps members had been registered under Batch C, and thanked Governor Mbah for improved welfare of Corps members and for making their environment conducive and safe.

“I am pleased to report that a total of 2,101 prospective corps members, comprising 983 males and 1,118 females, have been successfully registered for the 2026 Batch ‘C’ Stream/Orientation Course in Enugu State. Their level of cooperation, enthusiasm, and willingness to participate in camp activities have been commendable.

“We remain particularly grateful for your administration’s unwavering commitment to the welfare, security, and general wellbeing of Corps members.

“Of particular significance is the ongoing comprehensive intervention and overhaul of facilities at the NYSC Orientation Camp, Agwu, as well as improved welfare support and allowances, which you have graciously promised serving corps members,” she stated.

The Commissioner for Youth and Sports Development in Enugu State, Barr. Lloyd Ekweremadu, and the Chairman of Awgu, the host LGA, Hon. Uchenna Okolo, assured the corps members that the state and LGAs would continue to work collaboratively with the NYSC authorities to ensure they have the best service experience in Enugu State.

The new corps members were sworn in by the Chief Judge of Enugu State, Justice Afojulu Ozoemena, represented by Justice Anthony Onovo.

The event featured a parade by the Batch ‘C’ intakes.

Mbah also used the occasion to tour the NYSC Orientation Camp, Awgu, where he inspected completed and ongoing projects by his administration to make the Camp conducive for the corps members.