Former Director-General of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), Maharazu Tsiga, has narrated the terrifying ordeal he faced during his 56-day captivity in the hands of kidnappers, revealing he narrowly escaped being mauled by wild hyenas.
Speaking in Abuja on Thursday during the official handover of 19 rescued victims to their families, Tsiga shared chilling accounts of survival in the dense mountainous terrain where he was held after being abducted from his hometown, Tisga, in Bakori Local Government Area of Katsina State on February 5, 2025.
“A day before our release, we saw hyenas circling us—looking for food. And that food was us,” Tsiga recounted. He added that the group constantly encountered venomous snakes and scorpions in the wild.
The former NYSC boss disclosed that the kidnappers often used high-profile captives as human shields during air raids. “They brought us out during aerial attacks, hoping to deter aircraft from targeting them. But God is merciful,” he said.
In a particularly horrifying moment, Tsiga revealed that a rocket aimed at the kidnappers landed next to where he was sleeping but failed to explode. “They placed it beside me hoping it would detonate if I moved. It didn’t. That was God’s hand.”
Tsiga described the deplorable conditions they endured—receiving food only once a week and subsisting on Tuwo Dawa laced with salt, which worsened his existing health conditions. “I am hypertensive. Salt is poison to me, yet it was all they had. Now I can barely climb steps.”
He accused the kidnappers of targeting him due to the belief that government officials in uniform had access to hidden funds. “They said we hoard government money, so they used explosives to break into my home,” he said.
According to him, the captors had no fear of God but were terrified of military aircraft. “They said not to call on God—only money matters. But when they hear jets, even their cows run.”
Tsiga emphasized the need for a joint security approach: “We can’t leave everything to the government. Security is everyone’s business. Intelligence is key—our security forces are not magicians.”
Also speaking at the event, Ambassador Gideon Yohana, former Deputy Head of Mission in South Africa and fellow victim, thanked the National Security Adviser, Chief of Defence Staff, and all security agencies for their roles in securing their release. He commended ongoing improvements in security across states like Zamfara, Katsina, and Niger, and expressed hope for lasting peace.
