The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) applauds President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, the Chief of Army Staff, the Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS), the Nigerian Police Force and all other security personnel involved in securing the freedom of the 20 prospective National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members abducted in Imo State.
HURIWA considers the safe return of the young Nigerians a welcome development and commends the security agencies for the apparent level of coordination and intelligence sharing that contributed to their freedom.
This is the way security operations should work: intelligence sharing, inter-agency cooperation, coordinated action and an unwavering commitment to bringing abducted Nigerians home alive.
However, HURIWA is compelled to demand full accountability and transparency over what actually happened during the operation that led to the freedom of the corps members.
The Nigerian people deserve the truth.
Were the 20 prospective corps members actually rescued by the security forces, or were they released after the payment of ransom?
This question has become unavoidable because, from the information currently in the public domain, not a single suspected kidnapper has been reported arrested, captured or neutralised in connection with the abduction.
Indeed, the Imo State Police Command had earlier disclosed that its operatives traced the kidnappers’ hideout through drone surveillance but encountered serious difficulties accessing the location after discovering that the area had reportedly been planted with improvised explosive devices.
Additional equipment, including bulldozers and armoured personnel carriers, was subsequently deployed to facilitate access.
Yet Nigerians have not been told what happened afterwards.
How exactly did the hostages regain their freedom?
If this was a successful military and security rescue operation, HURIWA commends the personnel involved and demands that Nigerians be given a clear account of how the operation was conducted, without compromising legitimate operational security.
But if the victims were released following negotiations or payment of ransom, Nigerians also deserve to know the truth.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with acknowledging that abducted citizens were released through negotiations where necessary to preserve their lives. Human life is priceless.
What is unacceptable is for government and security authorities to present one narrative to Nigerians while concealing material facts about how citizens were actually freed.
Nigerians are not asking for operational secrets. They are asking for the truth.
HURIWA therefore demands that the security agencies come clean on the circumstances surrounding the release of the corps members.
Were the kidnappers engaged in negotiations?
Was any ransom paid?
Who negotiated with the abductors?
Were any suspects identified?
Were any suspects arrested?
Were the kidnappers able to escape from their hideout before the security forces arrived?
If the security agencies conducted a successful rescue operation, where are the rescued victims’ abductors?
What kind of rescue operation ends with the victims returning safely but leaves the perpetrators completely untouched?
These questions are particularly important because the abductors reportedly initially demanded N50 million for each victim, amounting to N1 billion, before reducing the demand to N5 million per person, or N100 million for the 20 victims.
HURIWA is not accusing any government agency of paying ransom. We are demanding clarification because the circumstances of the release remain unclear.
The government cannot simultaneously ask Nigerians to trust its security architecture and then refuse to explain significant questions arising from major security operations.
HURIWA equally welcomes the intervention of the Federal Government, the Imo and Oyo State governments, the NYSC authorities and the various security agencies involved.
We commend the patience of the parents and families of the abducted prospective corps members, who endured seven agonising days of uncertainty before their loved ones regained their freedom.
We also welcome the decision to place the rescued victims under medical care at the DSS Hospital in Owerri and urge the authorities to provide them with comprehensive psychological and medical support.
But the successful return of the victims must not mark the end of accountability.
The government must pursue the perpetrators.
The kidnappers must be identified, tracked, arrested and prosecuted.
The forests and criminal hideouts from which these criminals operate must not remain safe havens after every abduction.
Rescuing victims is only half of the job. Bringing their abductors to justice is the other half.
HURIWA therefore calls on the security agencies to provide Nigerians with a factual account of the operation that secured the freedom of the 20 prospective corps members.
We commend every security officer who genuinely risked his or her life to bring these young Nigerians home.
But we equally insist that the Nigerian people must not be sold a dummy about the circumstances of their release.
If they were rescued, let the authorities tell Nigerians how they were rescued.
If they were released after negotiations, let the authorities say so.
If ransom was paid, Nigerians deserve an explanation within the limits of operational security.
The lives of the victims matter. The truth also matters. And accountability must not be sacrificed in the name of public relations.
HURIWA will continue to demand both: the protection of Nigerian lives and the truth about how that protection is delivered.
Comrade Emmanuel Nnadozie Onwubiko
National Coordinator
Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA)
8 October 2026
