Kidnapped Bishop Kattey: Clergy Council Vows Not To Pay Ransom

Few days after the abduction of ArchBishop of the Niger Delta Province, and Bishop of Niger Delta North diocese, Most Reverend Ignatius Kattey, the councils of clergy and the knights of the Niger Delta North Diocese of the Anglican Communion have called for his unconditional release and vowed never not to pay ransom.

Most Reverend Kattey, who is the Dean of the Anglican Communion and the second highest ranking clergy to the Primate of the Anglican Communion in Nigeria, was abducted alongside his wife, Beatrice, Friday about 11.30 p.m by gunmen around Aleto-Eleme in Eleme local government area of the state.

His wife,Beatrice was abandoned with their car by the kidnappers at the nearby bush but the whereabouts of the clergy is still unknown.
Meanwhile, the Rivers state police command said it had initiated a rescue operation to get him freed from the clutches of the kidnappers.
At the joint press briefing by the two councils, Venerable Richard Opara and Sir Charles Ogundu-Chukwu, said neither the Church nor the family had been contacted by the kidnappers.
But they noted that the church would not pay any ransom.
“All we are asking for his unconditional release of arch-bishop.”

The councils of Knights and the Clergymen, called on the Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Abubakar, President Goodluck Jonathan and Governor Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi to intervene in the matter with urgency to ensure the timely release of the senior clergy.
“The news came to us as a shock and as we speak, the bishop is still in the hands of the captors. We wonder the offence of the God’s servant and why Archbishop Kattey would be abducted.
“We condemn it and we therefore ask for the unconditional release of the Bishop. We call on the IGP, the governor of Rivers state and the president to expedite action on his unconditional release”, the councils stated.

Asked if the church would be paying should the abductors demand ransom for the release of their leader, the councils said “we have said in our statement that we want an unconditional release of His Grace, the archbishop, ransom doesn’t come in”.
Symbolically, all the Clergymen were all dressed in black cassock. The knights, wore black trousers. They all prayed for the safety and speedy release of Bishop Kattey and called for divine judgement on his abductors.
We learnt that Youths of Eleme in Eleme local government area would be staging a peaceful protest Monday over the abduction of the archbishop, who also hails from their area.
A clergy from the area, Reverend Godwin Ollor, who confirmed this to the media in Port Harcourt Sunday evening, said the youths are angry at the development.

September 09, 2013