Wife of kidnapped UI professor Adigun Agbaje speaks

UI professor Adigun Agbaje

Adebola Agbaje, wife of Prof. Adigun Agbaje, who was kidnapped along Lagos-Ibadan Expressway last Friday, has pleaded for the release of her husband.

Mrs Agbaje told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday that the news of the abduction of her husband was shocking and traumatic.

Prof. Agbaje, a lecturer in the Department of Political Science, University of Ibadan (UI), was kidnapped alongside others near Dominion University on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.

Agbaje said her husband was caught in the incident around 7pm while returning to Ibadan from Ago Iwoye where he chaired an endowment event by the Awujale of Ijebu.

“I wouldn’t think he was targeted, I think it was a mishap because he was not the only one captured that day.

“There was a bus and some cars, all the people there were apprehended and taken to their hideout.

“And they are demanding a huge sum of money. What they are demanding for, the gratuity I am expecting for 35 years’ work for the government is not even up to half of their demand,” she said.

Agbaje called for proactive measures from the security agencies and synergy to secure the safe release of victims.

She called on the government to ensure protection of all citizens, stating that every life should be cherished.

“Nigeria needs a rethink because daily the country is going deep down in destruction. We are still negotiating and begging for the release of my husband,” Agbaje said.

She confirmed that three of the victims of the kidnappers escaped, adding that they were young people who fled for their lives.