Onyesom Peace Udoka, a lawyer recently called to bar, has been kidnapped alongside her sister while traveling home from her call to bar ceremony.
Gatekeepers News reports that the incident occurred on Friday around Lokoja, Kogi State, just days after Udoka’s formal induction on September 23 in Abuja.
According to a post on X by user @Rhave_official, the kidnappers are demanding a ransom of N20 million.
Reacting in a statement on Sunday, Afam Osigwe, the president of Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) described the development as unacceptable condemnable.
He said, “This tragic development is unacceptable and utterly condemnable. It is heartbreaking that at a time when our nation should be celebrating the future of the legal profession, young lawyers and their families are subjected to such harrowing ordeals.”
“No family should have to endure this trauma, and no citizen should live under the constant fear of insecurity on our roads.”
NBA urged the federal government and security agencies, particularly the Nigerian Police, to act with urgency, and ensure the immediate and safe release of our colleague and all others in captivity.
Osigwe added, “The safety and security of Nigerians cannot continue to be treated with levity. It is the primary duty of the government to protect the lives of its citizens, and this duty must be discharged with the seriousness it deserves.”
The association also demanded intensified and sustained action to secure our highways and restore public confidence in the ability of government to guarantee the safety of all who travel across the country.
NBA expressed solidarity with the victims’ families, saying, “We stand in solidarity with the families of the abducted victims in this difficult time, and we pray that God grants the victims a safe and speedy return to their loved ones.”
