One of the prospective members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) rescued from kidnappers in Imo State has recounted the horrifying conditions they endured in captivity, revealing that their abductors beat them and forced them to survive on dry garri and dirty water in a forest.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

Speaking in an interview with the BBC, the victim disclosed that the kidnappers monitored conversations between captives and their families, assaulting them whenever they were displeased with anything said during the calls.

She was among 20 prospective corps members and another passenger abducted on October 1, 2026, while travelling from Ibadan, Oyo State, to orientation camps in Abia and Akwa Ibom states.

According to her account, the kidnappers allowed the victims to contact their relatives using a phone but subjected them to physical punishment if their conversations provoked the abductors.

She said, “We are given a phone to call our family, and if any family say anything they don’t want to hear or any rubbish that would make them angry, we will be beaten.

“That person will be beaten, used the gun, wood. Sometimes they use their hands to punch them, mostly the guys.”

Recounting the circumstances surrounding the abduction, the victim explained that their journey began at about 9 a.m., with the vehicle making several stops along the way.

She said the driver eventually stopped after reaching a stretch of road considered dangerous, and the passengers were advised to rest before continuing their journey.

The prospective corps member added that she had informed her family they would spend the night in a public place before going to sleep.

However, she said she woke up to find herself caught up in the abduction and could not understand how she had been taken to the forest where they were initially held.

“When I woke up, that was when the incident happened. I don’t know how we got to the forest where we were kept for some time,” she recounted.

The victim said the abductors later moved them further into the forest, where access to food and clean drinking water was severely limited.

Describing their living conditions, she revealed that the captives survived mainly on dry garri and muddy water, despite the poor quality of the water.

“What we are eating there is just garri. Like Igbo garri, dry garri with mud water. Very dirty water. I can’t even give my enemy that water. We don’t have a choice, we have to take it for survival,” she said.

She also described the emotional distress she experienced during captivity, explaining that the situation left her confused, frightened and unable to process what was happening.

“I can’t explain how I felt. I can’t even cry, I was just looking, I was lost. I don’t know what to do,” she said.

“It felt like it was a movie. I don’t believe that this is happening to me.”

The victim further disclosed that she feared she might not survive the ordeal before security operatives intervened.

She expressed gratitude to the government and security personnel, particularly operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS), whom she credited with helping to secure their release.

“The government, the DSS staff, we were rescued by them,” she stated.

The prospective corps members were abducted on October 1 when gunmen reportedly attacked two buses along the Owerri-Onitsha Road near Umunoha in Imo State.

They regained their freedom on October 7 following a coordinated security operation and were subsequently taken to a DSS medical facility in Owerri for treatment.

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has declared himself the commander of field operations for President Bola Tinubu’s re-election campaign in Abuja ahead of the 2027 general elections.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶

reports that Wike made the declaration on Monday during a stakeholders’ meeting of the Rainbow Coalition in Abuja.

The meeting was attended by stakeholders from the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), including party chairmen, serving and former senators, National Assembly candidates, and political leaders from the FCT’s six area councils.

Speaking at the gathering, Wike announced plans for a joint mobilisation effort involving APC and PDP members to secure victory for Tinubu in the presidential election and support candidates of the ruling party contesting National Assembly seats in the FCT.

The minister urged participants to prioritise the coalition’s shared political objective over their individual party affiliations.

Wike said the stakeholders had reached a consensus on supporting Tinubu’s re-election bid, adding that he would coordinate political activities in both the FCT and Rivers State.

“For the presidency, all of us have agreed that it is Bola Ahmed Tinubu. I am going to coordinate the FCT and Rivers State. So you can imagine how important it is,” he said.

Emphasising his role in the FCT campaign, Wike added, “I am in charge of the FCT election. I am the commander of field operations as far as the FCT election is concerned.”

He further called on members of both parties to work together, insisting that political differences should not undermine their collective objective ahead of the polls.

“I want to let all of you know that we are going to work together. Nobody should say, ‘I am PDP’ or ‘I am APC.’ For the purpose of this election, we are together,” the minister stated.

Former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Professor Isa Ali Ibrahim Pantami, has appealed to his supporters to remain calm following the omission of his name from the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) final list of candidates for the 2027 Gombe State governorship election.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶