Gunmen kidnap five health, varsity workers in Taraba

Three ad hoc staff of the Taraba State Primary Health Care Development Agency, identified as Jatau Bwanu, Nyifwa Adamu and Success, were said to have been kidnapped in the Takum Local Government Area of the state by gunmen, Punchng report.

The staff, who were working with developmental partners, Geo-Reference Infrastructure and Demographics Data for Development and eHealth Africa, in collaboration with the state Ministry of Health and the state Primary Health Care Development Agency, were said to have been kidnapped on Friday while on duty around Kashimbilla in the Takum LGA.

We gathered that the staff were in the field collecting data for evidence-based planning for development across the 16 LGAs of the state when they were abducted.

When contacted, the Executive Secretary of the PHCDA, Mr. Aminu Hassan, confirmed the incident.

Hassan added that the kidnappers had yet to contact the families of their victims or the agency for ransom.

The Police Public Relations Officer in the state, David Misal, said the command had yet to ascertain if the staff were kidnapped or if it was a case of missing persons.

“The case looks like that of missing persons because no ransom has been demanded by those said to have abducted the workers.

“The command has embarked on a search operation. We have drafted our men to the area to search for them in all the bushes around,” he said.

In a related development, two workers of the Taraba State University and one other person driving in an official car, belonging to the university, were abducted by gunmen along Wukari-Takum Road last week.

The kidnappers were said to have demanded N25m for the release of the victims.

A member of the Taraba State House of Assembly, Hosea Ibi, representing Takum I constituency, was kidnapped in Takum town in December 2017 and was subsequently killed by his abductor.

Reacting to the development, the Senior Special Assistant to Governor Darius Ishaku on Media and Publicity, Mr. Bala Dan-Abu, called on security agencies to intensify efforts in securing the state.