Major General Peter Ademokhai (rtd) who was abducted on Thursday in Benin by unknown gunmen was released yesterday morning for an undisclosed sum.
The former General Officer Commanding 1 Mechanized Brigade of the Nigerian Army, Kaduna, said he was abducted in the presence of his wife but did not disclose how much was paid by his family to secure his release.
He said his abductors who were very kind to him, complained that they were forced into their trade by a system that have refused to cater for them.
It was an atmosphere of jubilation in his residence as well wishers thronged the place to rejoice with him but he, however, expressed bitterness over the level of insecurity and unemployment in the country.
Narrating his experience with the abductors yesterday, the grey haired light complexioned retired military officer said: "I feel as if I live in Somalia because that is a failed state where people can just carry guns and do anything. I don’t hate my abductors; I only hate the system that produced them. They were nice to me; they are my sons, they called me daddy.
"They said they did not like what they were doing, that they were driven into it by a system that did not create a space for them. One of the kidnappers even said he had N60 million in his account. I mean, that is not the kind of money you sweep under the rug in your house. I blame the system that cannot alert security agencies to trace the source of such depositors," he said.
It was gathered that his abductors had demanded for N100 million before he could be released to his family.