Three staff of the staff of the University of Maiduguri, Borno State, who are being held by the Boko Haram insurgents have appealed to the Federal Government not to employ force in their release but to negotiate with their abductors.
Four persons were declared missing by the university after a Boko Haram attack on the convoy in which they were traveling on Tuesday.
They were with a team carrying out explorative activities in the Lake Chad Basin for crude oil.
Also in the team were staff of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, military personnel and members of the Civilian Joint Task Force, who were providing security for the team.
In all, no fewer than 48 of the members of the team have been reported dead.
While the three members of staff were abducted on July 25, 2017, the video was shot on July 28, 2017, they said.
Those abducted are Yusuf Ibrahim, a lecturer in the Geology Department; Umar Dashi, a driver; and Dr. Solomon N. Yusuf, also a lecturer with the Geology Department.
They said they were abducted by the Abu Albarnawi faction of the Boko Haram sect.
The sect broke out from that of Abubakar Shekau.
Solomon said: “We are recording this video on the 28 of July 2017. I want to re-emphasise that we were caught on the 25th of July 2017.
“I want to call on the entire community of University of Maiduguri, I also want to call on our coordinators of the project, Prof. Saidu Baba, and Prof. Adamu Zubama, I want to call on the leadership of ASUU under the leadership of Dani Mamman, I want to call on the Vice Chancellor University of Maiduguri, Prof. Ibrahim Njodi, I want to call on the (Borno) State Governor, His Excellency, Kashim Shettima, I want to call on NNPC group under the leadership of Dr. Bako, I want to call on the leadership of the NNPC to join in this rescue.
“I want to call on the entire media community to support this our cry so that we will be rescued alive.
“I want to call on the Acting President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, to come to our rescue, to meet the demand of soldiers of Khalifa under the leadership of Abu-Musab Al-Barnawi.
“They have promised us that if their demands are met, they will release us immediately to go back to the work we were caught doing.
“I want to call the attention of the entire country.
“We were captured doing the work of exploration of acquiring gravity, magnetic and soil geo-chemistry for exploration in the Nigeria sector of the Chad Basin, which would boost the economy of the nation.
“We were caught while in the line of our service.
“I want to call the attention of the Acting President that we have seen the route we took up to this position where we are recording this video right now.
“I want to advice that the use of excessive force, it is not the solution and is not the solution.
“We want to call on the Federal Government to meet this demand as they promised they will release us immediately.
“We call on Nigerians to support our cry to be rescued alive.”
https://youtu.be/zQVooS5ylO0