Ishaya Kukah, the younger brother of the Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Most Reverend Matthew Kukah, has spoken out about the horrifying experience he endured in captivity before his rescue by Nigerian soldiers.
Kukah was among 60 individuals freed by troops of the Nigerian Army’s 1 Division in Kaduna, and formally reunited with their families during a handover ceremony held in Abuja on Tuesday.
The event was presided over by National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu and Defence Minister Abubakar Badaru.
Describing the ordeal, Kukah said the treatment he received while in the hands of his abductors left him hopeless.
“Frankly speaking, I had already given up. I didn’t think I would come out alive because of how they were treating us in the bush,” he said.
According to him, the kidnappers subjected their captives to relentless torture, often chaining them in pairs and offering no privacy for basic human needs.
“We suffered too much. They used to chain us in twos. If you wanted to defecate or urinate, you had to move together,” Kukah explained.
He revealed that the kidnappers used violence to force victims into making ransom appeals to their families. Those who resisted were either brutally assaulted or killed.
Kukah expressed deep gratitude to the federal authorities. “If not for the federal government, we would still be in the bush. Thank you for what you have done. God bless you,” he said.