Family and friends of the Managing Director of the Bank of Agriculture (BoA) are on bended knees praying for Alhaji Alwan Hassan who is among those allegedly whisked away by terrorists who attacked Abuja – Kaduna Train on Monday.
According to reliable family sources, Hassan was last seen when he boarded the ill-fated train on Monday.As of press time, a large number of passengers were still unaccounted for, including the Managing Director of the Bank of Agriculture, Alwan Hassan. Also abducted was a former Deputy Governor of Zamfara State, Ibrahim Wakkala, who was shot but later set free.
A source at the BoA said Hassan was last seen when he boarded the train and all efforts to reach him since the attack, which happened around 8pm on Monday, had not been successful.
“What you heard is true, we have not been able to reach him and no one has called us about him. It is a harrowing moment for his family and friends right now,” an official of the bank, who pleaded not to be named, stated.
Relatives besiege train stations
At the Kubwa Train Station, some people were seen on Tuesday looking for information about their loved ones even as the NRC halted operations on the affected corridor.
A lady, who identified herself simply as Mayowa, told one of our correspondents that her sister’s husband was among those who boarded the train and nothing had been heard about him.
As Mayowa struggled to hold back tears, she said, “He couldn’t get a flight from Lagos to Kaduna and had to join Air Peace to Abuja.
“His flight was delayed and he missed the 2pm train after I’d bought the ticket for him, which was why he joined the 6pm train on Monday. His wife, my sister, has been crying since last night.
“We’ve not heard from him. No one has contacted us about him and no one is telling us anything here about him. What are we to do now?
Security agencies have reported that eight bodies were recovered and 26 persons were injured during the attack. Investigations are still ongoing to ascertain the status of the passengers, who were on board the train and remain unaccounted for at the time of this update. Search operations are also being sustained.”
Among the dead was a dentist, Chinelo Megafu-Nwando, who was said to have recently resigned from her job and was planning to migrate to another country.
Megafu-Nwando had taken to Twitter shortly after the attack to announce that she had been shot and solicited prayers. She was later confirmed dead, while her remains were deposited in the mortuary of the St Gerard Catholic Hospital, Kaduna.
Also confirmed killed were the Director of the National Board for Technical Education, Abdul Kofarmata; the Kwara State Chairman of the Trade Union Congress, Akinsola Akinwunmi; and the TUC General Secretary, Musa-Lawal Ozigi.