Ekiti residents protest as 16 kidnapped worshippers remain in captivity despite ransom payment

• The community says it raised and delivered N10.5 million in ransom and other supplies demanded by the kidnappers, but the victims were not released.

• Protesters are calling on the Federal Government and Ekiti State authorities to intensify rescue efforts and improve security in the area.

A small community in Ekiti State took to the streets on Wednesday with a message for the government, stating that their people had paid the price and asking that they be brought home.

Residents of Eda Oniyo in Ilejemeje Local Government Area gathered in protest 36 days after gunmen stormed a Christ Apostolic Church during an evening service on April 28, shot and killed the presiding pastor, and dragged 16 worshippers into the bush.

The victims, mostly women, two young boys, children as young as two and three, and an elderly woman above 80, have not been seen since.

What makes the situation particularly agonising is that the community has already paid. After the kidnappers initially demanded N1 billion, they subsequently reduced the amount to N150 million, then to N50 million.

Residents pooled together N10.5 million, everything they could raise. They trekked through parts of Kwara and Kogi states into the bush to deliver it, along with two bags of rice, fuel, cigarettes and other provisions the abductors demanded. The victims were not released.

"The process of giving them the ransom was a terrible experience. After collecting the money, they simply told us we would hear from them," resident Ayodele Oni reportedly said. "Since then, they have continued making fresh demands."

The kidnappers have since resumed contact. They are now asking for N50 million.

According to reports, the protesters carried placards addressed directly to President Tinubu and the Ekiti State Government, with messages including "President Tinubu, save us, we are perishing" and "We reject terrorism, banditry and kidnapping in Eda Oniyo."

Community leaders, women, youths, and relatives of the victims all joined the march, their frustration sharpened by the sense that they had done everything asked of them and received nothing in return.

Another resident Bose Ajayi painted a picture of a community coming apart at the seams. "Families are suffering and children keep asking for their mothers. Women are crying, children are crying, and the entire community is in pain," she said.

Beyond the immediate crisis, demonstrators used the protest to demand structural changes they say would prevent future attacks. Their requests include a functional divisional police headquarters in the area, deployment of forest guards, and the establishment of a military base near the Ekiti-Kwara border, a corridor that has become increasingly dangerous for communities on both sides.

Resident Ajayi Ayodele summed up what 36 days without answers has felt like for those left behind. "Thirty-six days in the bush without proper shelter, bathing, or medical care is unbearable. Our mothers, wives, and children are suffering severe trauma," he said.

Neither the Federal Government nor the Ekiti State Government has publicly responded to the community's appeals. Security agencies have yet to comment on the status of rescue operations.

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