KATSINA: How our abductors treated us — Kankara schoolboys

ALMOST 24 hours after being rescued from the clutches of their abductors, students of the Government Science Secondary School Kankara, have been recounting their ordeals in the hands of their captors.

The schoolboys said they were kept in the cold and fed them just once in 48 hours.

In a video that surfaced online, one of the abducted schoolboys, Abubakar Salisu, said the majority of the students are not willing to return to the school where they were kidnapped.

He said their decision was prompted by the location of the school which they said is in the outskirts of the town, adding that it contributed to making futile the efforts of the security operatives to rescue them.

Salisu, however, said they felt the efforts of security operatives attempting to rescue them in one of the locations that they were kept.

He said, “I was very happy (to be rescued). At the time we were there (kidnappers’ den), we were kept in the cold. They gave us only cassava to eat.

“At night, we defecate and urinate on the same spot that we sleep. If we request to use the toilet, we are beaten.”

When asked if they are willing to return to school, Salisu replied, “None of us is willing to go back there. But some will go if the government increases the number of security operatives guarding us, without that we are not going back.

When asked why, the schoolboy replied that “In terms of security, the school is too far from town. When they came to kidnap us, the army and police arrived late. They already gathered us parked us inside the forest before the army and police came.”

Another schoolboy complained about his poor state of health.

He said, “They kidnapped us from December 11 and freed us on December 17. We really suffered in the bush. We were hungry in the bush and we had no mattress. Sometimes, it takes two days before we eat. They give us only cassava.

“I feel hungry. I am not feeling fine. I am sick.”

 Over 350 of the schoolboys were kidnapped by suspected bandits on Friday, December 11 by gunmen suspected to be bandits.

The government secured their release last night in Zamfara after days of negotiations said to be facilitated by the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association, MACBAN.

They were moved from Tsafe in Zamfara State, where they spent last night, to Katsina State this morning amidst tight security.