Nigeria: Kwara Abduction - Community Tells Police to Stop Disputing Figures, Rescue Victims

The Kaiama Development Association (KDA) has challenged the Kwara State Police Command over its position on the number of residents abducted during the February 3 terrorist invasion of Woro community.

It insisted that 176 people are still missing and called for an immediate shift from arguments over figures to intensified rescue efforts.

The association said community-generated records compiled immediately after the attack should not be dismissed simply because they did not originate from official security databases.

It argued that families, traditional rulers and local volunteers possess firsthand information on those yet to return home.

In a statement jointly signed by its President, Yakubu Salihu; Secretary General, Aminu Mohammed Umar; and Publicity Secretary, Dr Yahaya Hussein, the association described recent comments credited to the Commissioner of Police, Ojo Adekimi, as inappropriate.

It said the humanitarian tragedy deserved collaboration rather than disagreement over figures.

Daily Trust reports that the police commissioner had maintained that the command could not verify claims that 176 residents were abducted during the attack at a press briefing over the weekend in Ilọrin.

However, Aliyu Umar, a resident who participated in negotiations with the terrorists through a mediator, had told this newspaper that at least five women abducted while pregnant had since given birth in captivity, raising the number of those still being held from 76 to 81.

KDA further argued that available evidence should extend beyond official files to include records maintained by affected communities, traditional institutions, local government authorities, humanitarian organisations and relatives of victims.

According to the association, limiting the assessment of the tragedy to official documentation ignores the reality faced by communities devastated by the attack.

The association stressed that every victim still being held deserved equal attention irrespective of the eventual number confirmed.

Read the original article on Daily Trust.