Kidnapped Offa Indigenes Regain Freedom After Payment of 40 Million naira Ransom * Group Knocks Abdulrazaq for lack of empathy

By Omowumi Omotosho

After spending 24 harrowing days in captivity, seven Offa indigenes abducted while returning from Abuja to Offa have been released by their captors. Their freedom was secured without a shred of government support, but rather through massive efforts by the Offa community, who bore the full burden of a ₦40 million ransom payment.

The victims were kidnapped on Saturday April 19, 2025, while traveling in a Sienna bus operated by Olumoh Express, a well-known transport company in Offa.

The vehicle was intercepted near Obbo-Aiyegunle, in Ekiti Local Government Area of Kwara State. The seven passengers were taken, while three children were left behind by the suspected kidnappers.

A source privy to the rescue efforts, who spoke to National Pilot on condition of anonymity, confirmed that the victims were released on Wednesday midnight. The source further revealed that “the total ransom paid was ₦40 million, broken into two phases , an initial ₦12 million, followed by an additional ₦28 million after the kidnappers failed to release the victims after the first payment. It was the Offa ommunity that came together, again and again, contributing whatever they could. The government was silent throughout”

The silence, indeed, has become a painful echo in Offa. In a searing open letter, a group tagged; “Offa Concerned Citizens”, condemned what they described as the total silence and undisguised hatred for Offa community, by Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq during the crisis.

The letter reads:

OPEN LETTER TO KWARA STATE GOVERNOR, MAL. ABDULRAHMAN ABDULRAZAQ, ON THE KIDNAPPED OFFA PEOPLE

His Excellency,

Mal. Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq,

The Governor of Kwara State.

Dear Sir,

I hope this letter finds you well. It is with profound disappointment that I write to inform you that the kidnapped sons and daughters of Offa have finally been rescued after 24 days in captivity, following the payment of full ransom by the community itself. Throughout this ordeal, your administration’s silence and complete neglect have only confirmed what the people of Offa have long suspected—your undisguised hatred for our community.

When our people were abducted, many Offa indigenes rushed to you as the chief security officer of the state, with numerous appeals and letters seeking your intervention. Regrettably, you neither visited Offa nor the families of the victims, nor did you issue any official statement to reassure our people. When the initial ransom negotiation failed after the kidnappers took the money without releasing our people, your government remained conspicuously absent, forcing the community to contribute additional funds to secure their release this morning.

Thank you, Your Excellency. Rest assured that history and the people of Offa will never forget your administration’s abandonment in our time of greatest need.

CONCERNS OFFA CITIZENS