According to a news report from the Nigerian Tribune, in a show of solidarity, the Association of Resident Doctors at the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital (ARD-UITH) staged a peaceful protest over the ongoing abduction of their colleague, Dr. Ganiyat Popoola, who has been held captive by bandits for seven months.

Dr. Popoola, a medical practitioner at the National Eye Care Kaduna, was abducted along with her husband and nephew from the staff quarters of the hospital back in December 2023. With her release still pending, her colleagues staged this peaceful protest to bring attention to her plight and that of other victims of kidnapping.

Addressing journalists in Ilorin, the President of the association, Dr. Yusuf Muhammed, said that “the association is losing their patience because of the inhumane treatment their member is receiving from captors.”

He said, “It is becoming very worrisome, so we continue to engage with the management on both the state and federal levels.

“We also try to meet with several security agencies to see what they are doing, but because of the sensitivity of the matter, they could not divulge some information.”

Muhammed lamented that their colleague is still in captivity for seven months and her release is yet to be granted.

“What we intend to do is to bring this discussion to the limelight, so that well-meaning Nigerians will see how to bring the discuss, and press home on the government to secure her release,” he said.

The president stated that the national body; Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) , has given the government two weeks to bring back the abducted member.

According to him, “August 16th marks the end of first week and that it is expected at the end of the second week, the abducted colleague would be released”.

He warned that failure to secure her release, the national body will embark on industrial action.

Muhammed advised the government at all tiers to beef up security around institutions and the country as a whole.

“This is a sad reminder to the insecurity that is bedeviling the country and we feel that this is another call for the government to rise to the occasion in beefing up the security in work places to make it safe,” he said.