Commissioner’s Mother Abducted By Gunmen in Bayelsa

The spate of abduction of the relatives of political office holders in Bayelsa State continued yesterday when the 78-year-old mother of the state Commissioner for Lands and Survey,  Furuebi Akene, was kidnapped at her Fonibiri community in Southern Ijaw Local Government Area of the state.

The abducted Madam Akene was taken away by
armed men numbering about six at about 12 midnight on Saturday on her way from a church service.

According to her son, Furuebi Akene, who confirmed the abduction, said the incident happened without any gunshot.
  On pleading for the immediate and safe release of his mother, He said “my mother was in company of one of her granddaughters when the armed men arrived at about 12a.m. and took her away. They went towards the southern direction to the ocean.”

He added that the screaming of the old woman for help attracted villagers who were prevented from pursuing the kidnappers by the lack of boats.

“Preliminary investigation from the movement of the gunmen showed that they know her and have been studying her movements. They decided to take her quietly to avoid alarm.”

Akene confirmed that the armed men had made contact with him, but made strange demands.
He added that added one of the demands was that he should resign from the cabinet of Governor Seriake Dickson as a commissioner.

“Someone that I suspected to be one of the kidnappers called me and said they don’t need my money. But that I should “withdraw” from the present administration as a commissioner.
“My brother, I think the people interested in my job as commissioner in the state are the ones behind the abduction of my mother.”

Contacted on the development, the spokesman for the state police command, Mr. Alex Akhigbe confirmed the incident and said they had mobilised policemen to comb the waterways and creeks of the state.
According to him, “the terrain is very difficult but we are working hard with a view to identifying the location of the victim and rescue her.”