My two months ordeal in kidnappers’ den -Gen. Taiga, former DG, NYSC
.Says terrorists don’t fear God but fighter jets
By Idun Maximus
Former Director General of the National Youth Service Corps(NYSC), Brigadier General Maharazu Tsiga, has recounted his two months in captivity and ugly experience in the hands of terrorists.
Gen Tsiga who said the terrorists treated them like animals especially those of them who are retired military personnel, noted that they don’t fear God but military aircraft.
He revealed that the terrorists always used the kidnapped victims as shields whenever they come under military attack.
Gen. Tsiga explained how they were fed once daily with millet and salt, which affected his health as a hypertensive patient.
Revealing his ordeal shortly after he along other kidnapped victims were handed over to their families by the National Security Adiviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu and the Chief of Defence Staff(CDS), General Christopher Musa, in Abuja, he said he has been in hospital since after his rescue as a result of what he went through.
He thanked president Bola Tinubu, the NSA, CDS and the entire personnel of the armed forces and security agencies for their tireless efforts in curbing the insecurity bedeviling the nation.
The 72 year old retired general said he was kidnapped in his home after terrorists used explosives to bring down the door of his house.
“We were kept with dangerous animals—hyenas, snakes, and scorpions. A day before I was released, just the day before yesterday, while on the mountain where I was staying, we suddenly noticed a hyena circling us, looking for food. And what kind of food? Us, human beings.”
“Throughout our time there, we constantly lived with snakes and scorpions. But the most terrifying experience was how they treated those of us whose ranks they knew. “Whenever troops attacked them, they would bring us out and use us as human shields, hoping to get us killed by the military strikes. They wanted us to be hit by the aircraft. But God is merciful.
“The National Security Adviser (NSA) and the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) have said it—the good ones will survive, and ultimately, the bad ones will meet their end.”
Tsiga further narrated a particularly chilling experience involving an unexploded rocket: “During an airstrike, a rocket was fired at the terrorists, but it didn’t explode. Instead, they carried the unexploded rocket and placed it where I was sleeping, hiding it in a way that if I touched it, it would detonate. Yet, by God’s mercy, I survived.”
Gen. Tsiga, who said kidnappers’ believed that military officers have access to government funds, which led them to attack his home, said:
“They believe that those of us in uniform are given money by the government. That’s why they tried to break into my house. They couldn’t, so they went to my home in Kaduna and used explosives to destroy it, including the gates.”
The former NYSC boss who spoke on behalf of the 18 other rescued victims, commended the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, and the Chief of Defence Staff, just as he emphasized that security is a collective responsibility.
While calling on Nigerians to cooperate with the military and the security agencies, he said: “We must not assume that the government can do it all alone. Everyone must contribute by providing intelligence and information. The NSA and the CDS are not magicians; they need timely and accurate reports to act upon.”
