Just In: Sokoto Health College Denies Report Of 18 Students’ Abduction En Route To Oyo
The Gamji College of Health Technology, Sokoto, has denied reports that about 18 of its students were abducted while travelling to Oyo State.
The institution said none of its students was kidnapped, describing the report as false and misleading.
The denial followed a report alleging that gunmen abducted about 18 students travelling from Sokoto to their communities in Oke-Ogun, Oyo State.
The report further claimed that the driver of the vehicle conveying the students was killed during the alleged attack, while the victims were said to be travelling in a chartered bus to Igboho.
The report, which cited a youth leader from Oke-Ogun as its source, also claimed that the alleged abductors and their captives had reached the Mokwa axis of Niger State.
However, the Registrar of Gamji College of Health Technology, Abdulrahman Bello, dismissed the report as false when contacted.
“No, it’s false news,” Bello said during a telephone interview.
In a statement subsequently issued by the institution, the college said, “The College wishes to categorically state that the said report is false, misleading and does not reflect the true situation.”
“No student of Gamji College of Health Technology, Sokoto, was kidnapped, and there was no such incident involving our students,” the statement added.
The college said its students were safe and at their various destinations, pursuing their academic and professional programmes.
It urged parents, guardians and members of the public to disregard the report and rely on the institution’s official channels for information concerning its students.
Bello said the report had generated concerns over the safety of the students, with the institution receiving inquiries, including calls from people outside Nigeria.
Meanwhile, the Niger State Police Command said it was not immediately aware of the alleged incident, despite the report claiming that the abductors and their victims had reached the Mokwa axis.
The command’s spokesperson, Superintendent Wasiu Abiodun, said he would verify the report and provide further information.
The Sokoto State Police Command was also contacted for clarification, but its spokesperson, Ahmed Rufai, did not respond to calls or a WhatsApp message seeking confirmation as of the time of filing the report.
The alleged attack had not been independently confirmed by the police or any other relevant security authority as of the time of filing.
With the college firmly denying that any of its students was abducted, further clarification from the security agencies is expected to establish whether any such incident occurred.