The abductors of Professor Kamene Okonjo, the 82-year old mother of Nigeria’s Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister for the Economy, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala have finally reached the victim’s family, demanding a whopping $1bn ransom for the release of the woman kidnapped from their Ogbe-Ofu family home in Ogwashi uku, Delta State on Sunday.
According to sources, the kidnappers, in a very short message to the victim’s family, said the woman was safe wherever she was kept, but that the family must, as a matter of urgency, raise the said amount to facilitate her freedom.
Okonjo-Iweala has not reacted to the development but she had, in her confirmation of the incident, wondered if those behind the kidnap are the same people who had been threatening her of late or other elements with hostile motives.
Meanwhile, a son of the victim, Mr. Onyema Okonjo has said that his aged mother would not have been kidnapped were it not for security lapses.
Speaking at the family compound, he said: “They came in two green Golf cars and it all happened very quickly. I think there were definitely some lapses in terms of security. It is not what it should have been, the people that were supposed to have been here were not here.
“This gave them the opportunity to do what they wanted to do. But at the end of the day, we really have to be prayerful. I think it is really a sad reflection of where we are as a society.”
“I think there were definitely some lapses in terms of security,” said Onyema, who recalled that his father, Prof. Chukwuka Okonjo, the Obi of Ogwashi-Uku and Dr. Okonjo-Iweala were on their way to Ogwashi-Uku when the incident happened.
“It is not what it should have been; the people that were supposed to have been here were not here. This gave them the opportunity to do what they wanted to do, but at the end of the day; we really have to be prayerful.”
The state Commissioner of Police, Mr. Ikechukwu Aduba, said it is not the time to trade blames but promised that any officer indicted would be punished. He hinted at the possibility of an insider in the incident, stressing that the Police is working to unravel the mystery.
“We have been holding meetings with the governor and we have sent out our men to comb every nook and cranny and I am sure we will get her out unhurt,” he said.
In a related development, the Umu Anioma Foundation Worldwide has condemned the incident and demanded the immediate release of the victim.
A statement signed on behalf of the association by Prince Charles Anyasi, its National Coordinator, lamented that the image smear on Delta State has, once again, been brought to the fore with the unfortunate kidnapping of the aged mother of Nigeria’s energetic Finance Minister, Dr. (Mrs.) Ngozi Okonjo Iweala from her home in Ogwashi-Uku.
“Nothing can be hurting as the current world view of Delta State encapsulated in BBC’s report of the unwholesome development, stating inter alia: Nigeria is one of the worst countries in the world for kidnapping, where it is a lucrative criminal enterprise worth millions of dollars a year. The crime is particularly prevalent in the oil-rich Delta state, although high-profile victims are uncommon.
“The question is; how did we get here? Whether this latest heinous act was orchestrated as a payback for the finance minister’s principled stand on the current oil subsidy imbroglio or as a message to scare innocent indigenes making preparations to be with their kit and kin in this festive season, the perpetrators had better get it clear that, as Daniel Defoe would say, justice is always violent to the party offending.
“Umu Anioma Foundation Worldwide wishes to state categorically that a situation where citizens toiling diligently for the society’s positive turnaround are being punished by satanic elements can no longer be condoned. We demand the immediate and unconditional release of this old woman.
“As thousands of people get into celebration mood, many travelling to their respective home lands, we call on the security agents to beef up action and assure the public of safety.”
