James Azania, Lokoja
Some worshippers in Kogi State were Monday evening attacked by suspected armed thugs.
The thugs reportedly stormed the Dunamis International Church in Ayingba, Dekina LGA, stripped one of the officiating clerics haven beaten him to stupor.
Three of the worshippers were said to have been abducted.
They were however said to have regained their freedom on Tuesday morning.
The thugs were said to have disrupted a prayer walk organised by the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Kogi East chapter in supplications to God for peace in Nigeria and for His intervention against the shedding of innocent blood.
The attackers were said to have shot sporadically into the air as they made for the leader of the group, Bishop David Sanders.
Several others including women and children were not spared, and property vandalised.
Three church leaders including the zonal secretary of the prayer group, Pastor Silas Edegbo and Evangelist Emma Ibrahim were later whisked away to a yet unknown destination.
The resident pastor, Samson Ejila expressed sadness over the disruption of the peaceful “prayer walk for the country”
He said the organisers got approval from appropriate authorities including that of the police.
READ ALSO: VIDEO: Hoodlums disperse prayer session in Kogi
He also wondered why a notable political player in the area could lead armed thugs against an armless group.
Ejila however confirmed that the three abducted members were released in the early hours of Tuesday after they had been “thoroughly tortured.”
Meanwhile, Governor Yahaya Bello has condemned the Monday attack on the on the Anyingba praying band.
The governor in a statement issued on Tuesday by his Chief Press Secretary (CPS), Onogwu Muhammed, condemned the attack and assured that the perpetrators will be fished out and made to face the full weight of the law.
He said that at a time the nation is facing unrest and disturbance, there is a need for every religious organisation to intensify their faith by praying to God for His intervention in the affairs of the country, noting that any act capable of truncating peaceful religious gathering is sacrilegious, repugnant and unacceptable.
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