Seven Ekiti doctors receive kidnap threat

The Chairman of the Nigerian Medical Association, Ekiti, Dr John Akinbote, on Tuesday said seven doctors working in Ekiti State had received threat messages from kidnappers.

This is as members of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, Akure Zone, called for overhauling of the security chiefs in Ekiti State over what they called “poor professional handling” of a kidnap case of their member, Dr. Femi Omisore.

Omisore, a lecturer of the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife, was kidnapped on Friday in Ido Ekiti on his way to Oye Ekiti.

A former Chief Medical Director of the Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital, Dr Patrick Adegun, his wife, Kikelomo, and an industrialist were kidnapped on Thursday at different locations within the State.

A theatre nurse with Federal Teaching Hospital, Ido Ekiti, Mrs Margaret Aladenika, had been kidnapped last week Sunday along Ido-Ipere-Iludun road, while a yet be identified man was killed in the operation.

At a press conference jointly addressed by the NMA and ASUU, the unions lamented that the Police and the Department of State Services had not been handling the kidnap cases well.

In a speech by the ASUU  Zonal Coordinator, Dr Alex Odiyia, and read by the Chairman of Federal University of Technology, Akure, Dr. Bola Oniya, the union lamented that the security chiefs were allegedly treating the nefarious activities with levity.

“The government should as a matter of urgency overhaul the entire police force and other relevant agencies saddled with the responsibility of keeping peace in the state and more importantly the removal of or relocation of both service heads who find it difficult unraveling the root cause of our present predicament.

“It is sad to know that the nefarious, inhuman and dehumanising activities of these hoodlums heralded the arrival of the new Police Commissioner, Mr Joshua Ibine and the Director of DSS, Mr Duke Fubara  in the State.

“This is more so as none of them has been able to come up with any clue on the disappearance of those kidnapped and the whereabouts of the abductors. It is rather better imagined the agony of the family members of these victims since the unfortunate incidents.

“The questions on the lips of everybody is why kidnappers have chosen the lecturers or university administrators and their medical colleagues as their victims.

“The possible answer should be because of the hoodlums erroneous belief that they earn the highest income in the State that is presently wallowing in poverty.

“This is the major reason why some workers are being owed close to three months salaries with a lot of unpaid arrears of leave bonuses, what a double jeopardy,” he said.

In another statement, the ASUU Chairman of the Obafemi Awolowo University, Dr Caleb Aborisade, called on President Goodluck Jonathan and the Inspector General of Police, Mr Solomon Arase, to ensure that Omisore was released without delay.