The Rule of Law and Accountability Advocacy Centre, RULAAC, has expressed deep concerned over the latest abduction of prospective National Youth Service Corps, NYSC, members and other passengers along the Owerri–Onitsha Road in Imo State.
Reacting to the latest incident, RULAAC, in a statement issued on Friday by its Executive Director, Okechukwu Nwanguma, called for a review of security deployment along the road.
RULAAC noted that the attack reportedly occurred around Umunoha on October 1, when armed men intercepted two buses conveying prospective corps members and other passengers.
“The Imo State Police Command has reported the rescue of 10 victims, while operations to account for and rescue others continue,” RULAAC said.
While welcoming the rescue efforts, RULAAC pointed out that the incident raised urgent questions about the effectiveness of security arrangements along a highway with a significant presence of security personnel and checkpoints, including a longstanding military presence around Ukwuorji.
“How are armed groups able to repeatedly intercept vehicles, abduct passengers and move their victims away from this corridor despite these security deployments?
“This is not an allegation of complicity against security personnel. It is a legitimate demand for accountability and explanation,” the rights group said.
RULAAC called on the Nigerian Army, the Imo State Police Command and the Imo State Government to explain the security architecture covering the Umunoha–Ukwuorji axis and the wider Owerri–Onitsha corridor.
“Security along a major highway cannot consist principally of static checkpoints where motorists are stopped and searched.
“Effective security requires intelligence gathering, mobile patrols, surveillance of identified hotspots, rapid response and coordination among security agencies.”
RULAAC said previous abductions along the corridor should also be reviewed, raising posers over the handling of those incidents.
“Were the perpetrators identified and brought to justice? What security gaps were discovered? What corrective measures were taken, and why have similar incidents continued”?, RULAAC asked.
RULAAC insisted that the presence of checkpoints should translate into greater safety for road users, stressing that when kidnappings repeatedly occur around the same corridor despite visible security deployments, the effectiveness of those deployments must be examined.
“RULAAC therefore calls for an urgent joint security review of the Owerri–Onitsha Road, particularly the Umunoha–Ukwuorji axis, focusing on kidnapping hotspots, intelligence gaps, patrol patterns, response times and inter-agency coordination.
“The immediate priority must be the safe rescue of every person still being held and the arrest and prosecution of those responsible.”
RULAAC said rescue operations alone were not enough, maintaining that something must be done to check the incessant security breaches along the Owerri-Onitsha Expressway.
“Something is clearly not working along the Owerri–Onitsha corridor. The public deserves to know why — and what the authorities are doing differently to prevent the next abduction,” RULAAC said.
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