HURIWA seeks N100b compensation for deceased’s family over alleged govt’s laxity
The Ivianokpodi community in Etsako East Local Council of Edo State has been thrown into mourning as one of the minor seminarians kidnapped in July has reportedly died in captivity.
Emmanuel Alabi, a seminarian of Immaculate Conception Minor Seminary, Ivianokpodi, died 95 days after his abduction. The late Alabi and two other seminarians, Japhet Jesse and Joshua Aleobua, were kidnapped on July 10, 2025.
In June, Peter Andrew, from the same Ivianokpodi seminary, was abducted and killed. Jesse escaped and regained his freedom, but the others remained in the kidnappers’ custody.
Their pleas for freedom and rescue efforts did not yield results, even as the kidnappers reportedly placed them among their previous dead victims.
Aleobua regained freedom on November 4, but Alabi was shot dead while attempting to escape.
A statement by the Catholic Diocese of Auchi, signed by Assistant Director of Communications, Fr. Linus Imoedemhe, was silent on how Alabi died.
The statement said the Bishop of the Diocese of Auchi, Most Rev. Gabriel Dunia, expressed deep pain and sorrow over the loss of the young seminarian.
Dunia called on security agencies to intensify efforts to protect the lives and property of citizens and cautioned political leaders against turning a blind eye to the worsening insecurity in the nation. He urged them to prioritise the safety and well-being of the people over political ambitions ahead of the 2027 elections.
According to the statement: “The Catholic Diocese of Auchi invites all the faithful and people of goodwill to join us in praying for the repose of the soul of Emmanuel Alabi, and for peace, healing, and security in our land.
“The Diocese of Auchi remains committed to the values of faith, peace, and justice, trusting in God’s infinite mercy to bring comfort to the bereaved family, the seminary community, and all those affected by this tragedy.
“May the soul of Emmanuel Alabi, and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.”
Meanwhile, the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has condemned the Edo State Government, led by Mr Monday Okpebholo, for allowing Alabi to die in captivity without activating effective security measures to rescue him and to decisively deal with the abductors.
The rights group criticised the government for failing to provide the basic service of ensuring the safety and security of citizens, describing it as the fundamental legal obligation of any government.
Delving into the constitutional duties of the state, HURIWA noted that a government’s first responsibility is to protect its citizens against imminent danger, and that effective protection requires policies based on facts and logic.
In a statement by its National Coordinator, Emmanuel Onwubiko, the group urged the Edo State Government to wake up and protect its citizens. It added that if the leader lacks the zeal, passion, or capacity to do so, he should resign.
“For the avoidance of semantic doubts, we hereby ask: why should the government protect life? As affirmed by scholars, all human beings have basic, natural rights, the most fundamental of which is the right to life. The right to life belongs not only to the strong and powerful; it belongs to all human beings regardless of age, dependency, or ability,” he said.
HURIWA argued that government exists to protect natural rights and has a duty to defend the weak from the strong. “We all benefit when the law respects the dignity and value of every human life. Government should protect the right to life because it is the foundation of all other liberties,” Onwubiko added.
The group demanded that the Edo State Government compensate the family of the late seminarian, who was left to die in the hands of his captors, and advocated the payment of N100 billion as compensation for the loss of such a precious life.
