Mr Okoh Iloba Festus
Fifty seven years old farmer, Mr Okoh Iloba Festus has advised Ubulu-Uku farmers to stop going to farm all alone, stressing that, it is always safer to be with a second party or even in groups at the farm.
Mr Okoh from Ogbego quarters, Ubulu-Uku, Delta State, who escaped from the kidnappers den after four days of captivity thanked Ubulu-Uku people and the security personnel for the love they showed to him when he was kidnapped on the 3rd February, 2025.
In an exclusive interview with ANTHONY AWUNOR, the farmer spoke on his encounter with kidnappers. Read excerpts below:
What is your name?
My name is Okoh Iloba Fetus. I am 57 years of age.
Where did the kidnappers meet you?
I was in my plantation at Uzugbo Ogwugwu farm road, when they met me around 11:30am to 12 noon. That was on Monday, 3rd February, 2025. They were six persons that entered into my plantation but I later got to know that two out of them were already in captivity. So I can say they were four in number. That was how they took me away.
How did they look?
I can say categorically that they are Fulani Herdsmen from their language and how they dressed.
What exactly did they tell you when they accosted you?
When they entered, they asked me if I have drinking water and I told them yes. They ordered one of their members to go and bring the water. While he was bringing the water, they asked who was with me. I told them that I was alone. They immediately ordered me to drop my cutlass and asked what were in my bag, I told them that it was my phone. They searched the bag, discharged everything, took my phone and asked me to follow them. I complied.
How many days did you spend with them in the bush?
We spent four days in the bush.
At what point did you escape and how did it happen?
They were interfacing with my people negotiating random all the while. When my people were bringing the ransom, they brought us out closer to town around Emuhu. They were expecting to receive the money from my people when a hunter suddenly surfaced from nowhere. He came very close to us and flashed his torch. When they saw the hunter they shouted at him, asking “who be that” . Then the hunter challenged them, thinking they are stealing cassava from a nearby farm. It was at that point, that they shot the hunter and he returned the shooting to them. There was a gun battle between the two parties. It was at that point that I eloped and followed the hunter. The hunter was running and I was following him at the rear. I ran as fast as my legs could carry me. We later got to town and I saw a hotel where I ran into for my dear life. I can still remember the hotel by the name Loponi at Emuhu. It is located along the Expressway. That was I escaped from their captivity on the 6th February, 2025.
How can you rate the efforts of the Vigilante and security people to ensure you were rescued?
I must say that the security personnel, including Vigilante, anti cult and others put great efforts to ensure that I was freed. In fact I give kudos to them. They put in serious efforts and I honestly appreciate that love shown to me. I have never seen such of kind of love demonstrated at Ubulu-Uku since I was born. They tried. I must also commend Isho community, other villages both at Ubulu-Uku and beyond, who went extra miles to fight for my rescue.
What was going through your mind when you were with them?
Right inside my mind, I never thought, I could come back alive to tell the story.
How much did they put on your head. I mean the ransom requested from your people?
Initially, they requested for N30, 000,00 and later reduced it to N20, 000,000, N10, 000,000 and then N5, 000,000 at last.
You stayed very close to them. What can you say about their coordination?
To be honest, they are not organised. They don’t really seem to know what to do at every point in time. In fact they don’t like what they are doing and they know it is bad. Again, they seem to use kidnapping as a retaliation to the killing of their cows. They made me know that some people killed their cows and what they were doing was to realise some money.
With your experience, what is your advice to farmers at Ubulu-Uku?
My advice is that people should be very vigilant. Also they should not go to farm alone. That is my advice.
