By Damola Emmanuel
Good news from Kogi State! The uncertainties and trauma of 14 of the abducted students of the Confluence University of Science and Technology, Osara, Okene, Kogi State, have come to an end sending their families and friends into a rapture of joy.
The good news was broken, Sunday, by the Kogi State Police Command, and corroborated by the state Commissioner of Information and Communications, Mr. Kingsley Fanwo.
The students’ vicissitudes ended as they were rescued from captivity by the Kogi State Police Command, working in tandem with other security agencies and local hunters.
Dare-devil gunmen had invaded the Confluence University of Science and Technology, Osara, Thursday night, shooting wildly in every direction, sending panic across the campus as well as the host community. The students were studying for their upcoming examination when the gunmen struck.
The bandits reportedly breached the university’s security as they penetrated through the bush, headed straight to three lecture halls, and started shooting sporadically to scare the students.
Confirming the heart-warming development, the state Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. William Aya said: “So far, 14 of them have been rescued, Our men are in the bush trying to find the rest.”
In a separate statement issued on Sunday, the state government, through the Commissioner for Information and Communications, Mr. Kingsley Fanwo, disclosed that “some” of the abducted students had been rescued.
Though the Commissioner did not disclose the number of students rescued, he ascribed the rescue operation to the superior firepower by security operatives and local vigilante men over the kidnappers.
In the statement, the government said: “This is to inform the general public that some of the students abducted by gunmen at the Confluence University of Science and Technology, Osara, have been rescued safely by local hunters and other security agents.
“Local vigilante men and security agents engaged the kidnappers in a fierce shootout and the kidnappers succumbed to superior firepower and escaped with gun wounds, leaving the kidnapped students who also ran in different directions to avoid being caught up in the fire exchange.
“Many of the students kidnapped and even other people in captivity have been rescued and taken to medical facilities for proper attention, while many others were also rescued in the early hours of today.”
Mr. Fanwo also noted that “in the sporadic gun battle to rescue our dear students, a local hunter and a DSS operative sustained injuries and they are currently receiving medical attention.”
Continuing, he said: “The success recorded so far is a clear testament to the readiness of Governor Ahmed Usman Ododo to ensure adequate and uncompromising security for the people of Kogi State. We urge residents to report anyone with gun wounds found in their communities to law enforcement agents.”
Recall that, in a statement on Friday, Governor Ododo had assured parents and the weary public that the abducted students would be rescued and reunited safely with their families. He had further disclosed that his government had “activated the security architecture to track the kidnappers and ensure the abducted students are rescued and the abductors apprehended.”
But the statement maintained that “nine students” were reported missing, adding that security operatives and local hunters were already combing the forest to ensure the safe rescue of the abducted students.
Governor Odo, during a visit to the university campus, said there was insider collaboration in the crime.