Following the abduction of two senior lecturers of Abia State University, Uturu (ABSU), Prof S.O Eze and Dr Christian Afulike Thursday evening, August 19, 2021; the management of the university and unspecified number of security agencies have swung into action, exploring ways with the locales to effect their release unharmed.
The school is sad that a bad news could befall the university after a glorious matriculation exercise, the first the Vice Chancellor, Professor Maxwell Ogbulu is presiding over since his appointment as VC in November 2020.
Chijioke Nwogu, the Public Relations Officer of the institution told our Reporter Friday evening that the university is optimist that the two academics will be released soonest unconditionally and unharmed.
The pitiable and worrisome aspect of it, observed our Reporter, is that one of the kidnapped dons, Prof S.O Eze is elderly and may find the vagaries of the weather outside his home as well as the maltreatment by the hoodlums highly discomforting.
Today, the VC alerted the state government which also mobilized the security agencies in the state to comb that scene and forests of the abduction and get the victims out of the bandits’ dens immediately.
In the meeting the university management held today, August 20, 2021 presided over by the Vice Chancellor with some security personnel within the university system, strategies were mapped out for a breakthrough.
It will be recalled that two senior lecturers of Abia State University, Uturu (ABSU), Prof S.O Eze and Dr Christian Afulike were on Thursday evening, August 19, 2021 abducted along ABSU-Ogboro road by persons suspected to be Fulani Herdsmen.
The incident reportedly occurred at about 6pm on Thursday.
Reports coming from the university said the suspected Herdsmen were robbing passengers in some vehicles along the road when the two lectures separately ran into them
The Chairman of ABSU’s Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), V. U. Nkemdirim, said Prof. S.O Eze is of the Department of Industrial Chemistry, while Afulike is a Methodist ecclesiastics Minister and in the Department of Mass Communication.
According to him, they were travelling in separate cars “when they ran into them”, adding, “After the robbery, the herdsmen took the two lecturers and some others away.
“As of now, they’re yet to be seen. However, the Camry belonging to Dr. Chris Afulike has been recovered with his phone inside the vehicle”. He further stated that the university management has been alerted on the matter and was working assiduously to ensure their release.
Nkemdirim also disclosed that ASUU’s national body has been contacted on the incident. However it was gathered that the kidnappers reportedly shot one Miss Ezinne Esike during the operation.
She was however rescued and is currently receiving treatment in an undisclosed hospital. It was learnt that she is responding to treatments.
Uche Nwosu is a two time Shell Petroleum PLC award winner in the year 2000;
He won the Shell Award on Investigative Journalism and Environmental Cleanliness.
