It has emerged that ransoms were paid in three tranches to obtain the release of over 300 schoolboys abducted from the Government Science Secondary School, Kankara in Katsina State.
The schoolboys were abducted by bandits on December 11, but less than a week after they were freed.
However, the Wall Street Journal, in a report, gave more insight into the development that led to the schoolboys’ release.
According WSJ, some of the boys said they were thoroughly beaten by the bandits, adding that a ransom was paid to the kidnappers before they were freed.
Their narration conflicted with that of the Zamfara and Katsina governments which said no ransom was paid.
Three of the boys said their kidnappers told them they were initially paid N30m, equivalent to around $76,000, but decided not to release them because they had demanded N344m per head.
“They threatened to release only 30 of us when the 30 million initial ransom was paid,” the newspaper quoted 16-year-old Yinusa Idris as saying.
“They even took 30 of us away on motorcycles ready to release.”
Another abducted pupil, Imran Yakubu, a 17-year-old, said the kidnappers told them
“One million naira must be paid per each student…or we will recruit or kill you.”
WSJ also noted that a person familiar with the negotiations said a ransom was transferred in three batches.
The boys were further told, on December 16, that if they returned to school, they would be kidnapped again.
“There were more than 100 armed men in the school courtyard. They were shining bright flashlights and streaming into the pastel-coloured buildings. ‘Gather here. We are soldiers,’ they said.
Some on foot, the gunmen, others on motorcycles, ordered the boys to walk in a long column, hitting anyone who walked too slowly with a whip or rifle butt.
“At one point, when the guards were looking at the sky, two students close to the back of the convoy tried to slip away. We were all told to halt so they could watch our classmates being punished.
“The older one’s hands were tied to a tree, and he was beaten. Water was poured on his body in the early morning so that he could feel the cold,” one of the students narrated.
Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Malam Garba Shehu, had on Tuesday reiterated an earlier statement by the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, that the Nigerian government didn’t buy freedom for the pupils.
The Nigerian military also said that kinetic and non-kinetic approaches were used to ensure all the boys were rescued unhurt, saying that there was resistance from the abductors who laid an ambush against the troops.
“Following the directive, the troop closed in on the abductors from four different fronts, including the reinforcement that was made from other divisions to ensure that the entire location was sealed off.
“The bandits were all under siege, and they were fully aware of that, feeling the impacts of the presence of the troops both from the air and on the ground,” Coordinator, Defence Media Operations, John Enenche said.
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