The eight rescued kidnap victims who have been receiving medical attention at Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital, Ado Ekiti, were on Sunday discharged after a week in the facility.
The victims including five school children and three staff of The Apostolic Faith Group of Schools, Emure Ekiti, who were kidnapped along the Emure-Eporo Road, on their way home from school, spent six days in the kidnappers’ den before they were released last Sunday.
The state Commissioner for Health, Dr Oyebanji Filani, said it was a moment of joy, having the people rescued from the kidnappers and treated by government.
Filani, who spoke at EKSUTH while discharging them, said, “As a government having had them including the children released and having had them properly treated by various teams from management here in the teaching hospital, we would be returning them to their community.”
The Chief Medical Director, EKSUTH , Prof. Kayode Olabanji, had assured the government while the eight persons were brought in last Sunday, that they would be given necessary medical attention before they would be discharged.
Olabanji had said, “They were in various conditions when they were brought in, some of them were so dehydrated, we don’t know when last they had taken water or even food. Many of the pupils were in a panic state, you could see that they were very terrified. However, immediately we brought them in, they had been attended to by the doctors, nurses and the various specialties.
“We brought in clinical psychologists who could work on them to allay their fears. They were given the initial resuscitations including rehydration, they were given fluids, some who needed oxygen were given oxygen.
“After they had stabilised a bit, they were even given food too, now, they are much better, we will still carry out few investigations to fully appraise their situation.”
The grandmother of three of the school children, Mrs Dorcas Ojo, said it would not have been possible for her to remain alive if the kidnappers had not released her three grandchildren.
The woman, who said the eight abducted persons were saved by God through the prayers of the people of Emure Ekiti and Eporo Ekiti, said, “The abductors made the children undergo what their parents had never experienced.
“They (children) were traumatised by the kidnappers as they were forced to trek long distance in the bush, not staying in one location and also not given food to eat for the days they were in captivity.”