Dr. Mustapha Imam, one of the passengers kidnapped during the Kaduna-Abuja train attack, has recounted his ordeal in captivity, saying he wouldn’t wish even his enemy to pass through the experience.
Dr Mustapha, who was one of the five passengers freed by the bandits on Tuesday, said he was the doctor at the camp and treated the bandits.
“I was the medical doctor in the camp. I was treating captives as well as the bandits,” he said.
According to him, “there was no medication in the camp,” citing the case of a woman – who had malaria – but went into a coma because there was no medication to treat her.
“My experience is really terrible. You can see, I just finished shedding tears, tears of joy. I am happy that I am free and going to be reunited with my family very very soon,” Dr Mustapha added.
“The experience I have been through in the last four months is not something that I will like even my enemy to go through.”
The associate professor of Medical Biochemistry at the Usman Danfodiyo University, Sokoto, also said feeding was a big issue during his time in the abductors’ den.
He said there “were days we ate once a day”, calling on the Federal Government to “take whatever necessary steps to ensure the release of the remaining people”.
Tukur Mamu, a member of the team who negotiated the release of Dr Mustapha, had earlier told Channels Television that he has backed out due to threats to his life, personal integrity, and lack of support from the Federal Government.
With the recently freed victims, the number of released passengers has now swelled to 37. As of now, 35 persons are still in captivity.
But it is unclear if any ransom was paid for the recently released persons.