The 20 prospective National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members freed by their abductors in Imo State have reportedly been offered postings to any of the six South-West states to continue their national service.
CDA News Nigeria reports, citing Saturday PUNCH, that a parent who spoke in confidence on Friday said the survivors were allowed to choose where to serve, and that they would continue with the current batch. The South-West states are Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Ondo and Ekiti.
The parent also said the families paid ₦6 million in ransom for each of the graduates. Another relative of a survivor said family members and well-wishers contributed to a ₦6 million payment.
CDA News Nigeria gathered that this figure is higher than the range of ₦3 million to ₦6 million earlier reported by other parents. One mother had said the abductors first demanded ₦50 million per person.
The victims were abducted on October 1 near Umunoha in Imo State while travelling in two buses from Ibadan to orientation camps in Abia and Akwa Ibom. The police said they were rescued on October 7 at Amakohia Ubi Village in Owerri West. The Imo Commissioner of Police, Audu Bosso, has said he is unaware of any ransom payment.
The NYSC Director-General, Brig-Gen. Olakunle Nafiu, visited the freed members alongside security chiefs after their release, and they were taken to a DSS hospital in Owerri for medical checks.
The NYSC has not confirmed the posting offer, and its spokesperson, Caroline Embu, had not responded to requests for comment at the time of the original report. The ransom figures are unverified claims from families.
CDA News Nigeria will update this story as more information emerges.
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