The lead negotiator between the government, families and abductors of the passengers of the Abuja-Kaduna AK-9 Train, Malam Tukur Mamu, has claimed most of the remaining victims of the train attack may hardly survive the next few weeks due to deteriorating health conditions caused by snakes bites and inhumane conditions in the forest.

Mamu is a media consultant to Sheikh Dr. Ahmad Gumi and one of those who successfully secured the release of 11 of the abducted passengers penultimate Saturday.

Mamu said efforts to rescue the remaining 50 victims must be treated as a national emergency if the government wants all of them to come back alive.

The terrorists attacked a Kaduna-bound train on March 28, 2022 and killed nine of the passengers. abducting no fewer than 63 of the passangers, including the Managing Director of the Bank of Agriculture (BOA), Alwan Ali-Hassan before he was released some days after upon alleged payment of N100 million.

Mamu said he was alerting the security agencies and concerned Nigerians that something very urgent must be done immediately to serve the lives of the remaining suffering victims.

He said: “This is no time to politicise issues. The lives of very promising, innocent Nigerians are involved in this. Their health condition is deteriorating by the day. Even animals without proper care will hardly survive in the environment they are forced to leave for nearly three months now. I believe the government is aware and has taken note of the testimony of the 11 victims that were secured. It makes me sad when issues like this should not be treated with dispatch, with the seriousness and speed it requires.

“Government must activate all avenues of diplomacy. It must be on top of its priority now. We must not be distracted by prioritizing 2023 as I am sadly seeing now while there is visible and glaring threats of losing the remaining victims. There has been no major pronouncement lately by all the major political gladiators. All the major political parties have expectedly kept mute. Is it because none of them or their family members are involved?”

He added: “I can confirm to you that snakes are many in that forest. Some of them are victims of the snake bites as they appear frequently in the night. They only depend on local solutions to treat it.

“The bites as we know can be life-threatening. Government is the only authority with the means and powers to end this crisis as soon as possible. And with the right approach, I can assure you it can be achieved within days or weeks. We have proven that in the release of the 11 victims

“I keep repeating that when one by circumstances was left at the receiving end of every bargain situation particularly a bargain that will secure the lives of innocent people from dreaded killers, the government must be prepared to make compromises and to take painful decisions.

“If we can tolerate corrupt officials that are stealing billions every day as a result of which poverty and insecurity increases, for me it is not out of place to use negligible part of such stolen resources to secure such victims whenever the need arises. And if for any reason the government did not act promptly, since it has been alerted, they must be prepared to take full responsibility.”,

"Exciting news! TheNigeriaLawyer is now on WhatsApp Channels 🚀 Subscribe today by clicking the link and stay updated with the latest legal insights!" Click here! ....................................................................................................................... Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material and other digital content on this website, in whole or in part, without express and written permission from TheNigeriaLawyer, is strictly prohibited _________________________________________________________________ [Register Now] ILA Nigeria Branch Marks 10 Years With Infrastructure Financing As Theme For 7th Annual Conference The International Law Association - Nigeria Branch 7th annual conference on public-private partnerships for sustainable infrastructure financing, April 4-5 in Abuja. Details: https://ilanigeria.org.ng/conference _________________________________________________________________

NIALS' Compendia Series: Your One-Stop Solution For Navigating Nigerian Laws (2004-2023)

Email: info@nials.edu.ng, tugomak@yahoo.co.uk, Contact: For Inquiry and information, kindly contact, NIALS Director of Marketing: +2348074128732, +2348100363602.