Imo Governor Hope Uzodimma and the Oyo State Government have commended security agencies following the safe rescue of 20 prospective National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members abducted along the Onitsha-Owerri Expressway in Imo State.
Uzodimma, in a statement issued in Owerri on Wednesday, October 7, praised the security agencies for their prompt and coordinated response, saying their efforts led to the victims’ release unharmed. He also commended the collaboration between the Imo and Oyo governments and thanked the victims’ families for their patience during the ordeal.
The Oyo State Government, through its Commissioner for Information and Civic Orientation, Mr Dotun Oyelade, described the release as a welcome development. Oyelade congratulated the two state governments and the Federal Government, while urging security agencies to intensify intelligence gathering and coordinated operations to prevent further abductions.
The 20 prospective corps members were abducted on October 1 by unidentified gunmen who intercepted two commercial buses travelling from Lagos and Ibadan towards Uyo and Bende in Abia State. The victims were reportedly taken into a forest around the Umunoha axis of the expressway, with the Oyo Government calling for stronger measures to address kidnapping and banditry across the country.
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