FAMILIES of victims of the Abuja-Kaduna train attack who are still in captivity have staged a peaceful protest in Kaduna.
Their protest is coming about 42 days after terrorists attacked a Kaduna train, killed nine passengers and abducted 70 others.
The leaders of the abducted victims’ family forum, Dr Abdulfatai Jimoh and Dr Baaba Muhammad said the train services on the Abuja-Kaduna corridor should not resume until all the kidnapped passengers are safely rescued and the safety of prospective passengers assured.
The duo who addressed the press in Kaduna expressed disappointment with the Transport Ministry over failure to secure the release of the kidnapped train passengers.
The families equally called for the punishment of officials of the Nigerian Railway Corporation, (NRC) over its failure to implement the presidential directive for the opening of a situation room to give a minute by minute account of rescue efforts to relatives of kidnapped passengers.
“We are the families of abducted passengers of the NRC AK9 Abuja-Kaduna bound train attacked on 28th March 2022.
“Today marks the 42nd day our loved ones have been held, hostage. It has been 42 long days of living in fear, virtually no sleep, no bath, wearing the same clothes, under the scorching sun and rain, and exposed to extreme environmental hazards. The emotional, psychological, mental, and physical torture arising from these conditions are only imaginable.
“Among the abducted passengers are children, some as young as 3 years old, pregnant women, including an 85-year-old great grandmother, and others. Some of these victims have health challenges requiring daily medications, which they have had no access to in the last 42 harrowing days.
“We read in the news that one of the two pregnant women in captivity delivered her baby in the forest. Giving birth is supposed to be a moment of joy; how would it have been if this woman delivered her baby in the comfort of a maternity ward? In whose hands? What is the place of birth of this baby, the forest?
