By GARBA MUHAMMAD, Kaduna

Five more students of the Federal College of Forestry Mechanization, Afaka, Kaduna, have been released.

The first five of the students kidnapped on the March 11 from their school hostel, regained freedom on Monday.

The latest release of the students came on the heels of Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF)’s promise to set up a committee to facilitate meeting with governments over the 39 abducted students.

The five released on Thursday brings the number of the freed students to 10, leaving 29 still in captivity.

One of the parents who confirmed the development said the freed students were picked up by the Police in Giwa local Government and were on their way to Kaduna town as at the time of filing this report.

The parent said: “Yes, five more of our children have been released. Presently, we are waiting for them to come into Kaduna. But I can confirm to you that they have already been picked by men of the Nigerian Police. We are yet to see them.

“As soon as they come in, they are going to be taken to the hospital for examination, but we are waiting to receive them first,” the parent said.

The Kaduna State Police Command’s Public Relations Officer, ASP Mohammed Jalige, said he missed a call from the DPO in charge of Kidenda Giwa Local government, who had possibly called to brief him on the development.

He however, promised to get back to our Correspondent when he gets details on the development.

Earlier, ACF promised to set up committee on the rescue of the kidnapped students, after it’s recieved parents of the students during it’s National Executive Council (NEC) meeting of the forum.

The Chairman of the parents of the Afaka 39 students, Mr. Sam Kambai, pleaded with the house to prevail on the state government to assist in facilitating the release of their children who had spent almost 30 days in the kidnappers’ den.

Kambai who expressed concern over the plight of the abducted, urged the leadership of the northern body to assist the traumatized parents by prevailing on the authorities concern to do the needful for their children to regain their freedom from their captors.

“We plead with this house to do something,” adding that “we are not talking about our children alone but others being held in other parts of the state.

“We are happy that we are here to talk to our parents to assist us to prevail on the state to assist in rescuing our children,” Kambai added.