Niger Delta militants operating on the creeks in Ondo State have warned the state government and security agents not to try to use force to secure the release of the abducted Peoples Democratic Party�s leaders.
The warning came on the heels of the release of Mr. Suffy Ugorji on Monday night, being one of the 11 members of PDP who were abducted in Ondo State.
Urgoji, who said he had worked as a journalist with some Lagos-based newspapers, told our correspondent on the phone around 3:30pm on Tuesday that he had been released.
He said that he was on his way to Akure, the state capital, when he called to notify our correspondent about his freedom.
According to him, his captors freed him around 11p.m. on Monday, following the release of the first batch of two.
He said that though the militants did not maltreat their victims who were captured on Saturday night at Arogbo, in Ese-Odo Local Government Area of Ondo State, the experience was terrible.
The spokesperson of the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta, who refused to mention his name, told our correspondent on the telephone on Tuesday that the group was open to negotiation with Ondo State Government or its agents.
He said, �Tell them not to try any funny thing with us. If they try to use force, they will regret their action.
�This matter is between the state government and the boys. They must settle us. Let them pay us what they promised and there will be peace.�
He described those who have been saying that the government did not enter into any negotiation with the militants as liars. He said that some top politicians in the state, who are of Ijaw extraction, negotiated with the militants on behalf of the governor.
According to him, the N500m the militants are demanding from the governor will be used to demobilise those recruited to work for Agagu and PDP�s success at the April polls.
He added that over 500 militants from the Niger Delta region (from Akwa Ibom to Ondo State) were mobilised and armed to ensure Agagu�s success at the poll.
The Ondo State Police Command has declared two of the militants wanted. They are Ebi Lubi and Bibopiri Ajuba.
In another development, suspected militants on Monday night stormed Woji, a suburb of Port Harcourt and whisked away the cousin to the Chairman of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association in the state, Mr. Ben Dimkpa.
A source said that the militants have already contacted the family of the IPMAN chairman and demanded for N30m ransom.
The militants successfully carried out the Woji operation in spite of the heavy presence of soldiers from the Joint Task Force and policemen.
A source told our correspondent that the gunmen, numbering about 12, came from the waterfront in a speedboat and immediately moved upland into Woji community.
He said that as soon as they entered the community, the militants started shooting sporadically, while residents scampered for safety.
The source further said that the gunmen shot at the gateman to the oil marketer before they entered his house and took his cousin away.
The Police Public Relations Officer in the Rivers State command, Mrs. Ireju Barasua, confirmed the attack in a telephone interview with our correspondent.
She did not, however, confirm that the abductors demanded any ransom.
Meanwhile, the senatorial candidate of the Democratic Peoples Alliance in Ondo South senatorial district during the last election, Chief Kole Omololu, on Tuesday, said the kidnapping of the PDP leaders in the area should be seen as a criminal act.
Sep122007