by ‘Jola Sotubo

The former Primate of the Anglican Church of Nigeria, Peter Akinola has been rescued from his kidnappers.

Akinola was abducted yesterday in Abeokuta, the capital of Ogun, while attending to matters relating to his charity organization.

The cleric and his driver were both rescued alive close to Nigeria’s border with neighbouring Benin Republic.

The Nation reports:

The Primate and his driver were last night rescued from the kidnappers along Joga-Iboro Road near the border with Benin Republic, the police said.

Primate Akinola and his driver were snatched away by the gunmen in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital at about 3pm.

In what would have been one of the biggest cases of abduction, the 69-year-old former fiery cleric was overpowered by the gun-toting men at the entrance of the Peter Akinola Foundation Centre for youth Industrial Training at Kilometre 10 near Obada-Oko along the Abeokuta-Lagos Expressway.

The former President of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) hails from Abeokuta. He was at the centre – which he founded to take care of the underprivileged – to inspect some projects within the office when the gunmen stormed the place.

The gunmen reportedly stopped the Sport Utility Vehicle (SUV) inside which he was and ordered him and his driver out, pointing guns at them.

They reportedly shot sporadically into the air before escaping with the cleric, his driver and his car.