A United Pain and the Power of Collective Prayer for Biba

By Miriam Ikunaiye

First and foremost, we must thank Almighty Gracious God that never fails.

And on behalf of Habiba (Biba) and her entire family, I say a heartfelt thank you to the BCO community, friends, families and all the total strangers and other great organizations that took this tragedy and made it their own. While Biba is still receiving medical attention and recuperating, she sends her eternal gratitude to you all for the overwhelming support, love and attention given to her during her kidnapping ordeal. She prayed that Almighty God in Heaven repay you all in folds. Once again, she thanks you all from the bottom of her heart. From Biba

BIBA WENT MISSING
On Sunday, January 31, 2016, my phone ranged at about 9:45pm. It was Biba's husband at the other end. He said in an unfamiliar raspy voice "I call to talk to you about Biba," then his voice suddenly dropped very low. I could immidiately sense sadness and fear. I became very nervous as I struggled out of bed pressing the phone very hard against my ear, waiting for his voice to come back up. Of course, a thousand thoughts ran through my head but kidnapping was not one of them. But he said "Biba is been missing since yesterday. She took a taxi and never got home." I can't remember how we ended the conversation but I knew I became hysterical but managed to report it on Buharian Culture Organization's chatroom; a community of compassionate folks, working tirelessly round the clock without pay, to CHANGE Nigeria through communitarian efforts.

SEARCHING FOR BIBA
As always, all the members of BCO community immidiately started posting and sharing on their whatsapp, facebook, twitter, and spreading the news to their families and friends, colleagues, organizations, Churches, Mosques and everywhere. Shortly after, the social media went wild and calls and prayers came pouring in from everywhere around the globe.

The following morning, while the case was immidiately reported to police in Kubuwa and despite police's advice to wait for 48hrs, we went ahead and formed a citizen search team. Pockets of team went different directions to hospitals, police stations and on the roads, looking for accident cases or eyewitnesses but we turned out with nothing. Then we made some missing person flyers and went to markets, banks, Shopping centers, fuel stations but we came out with nothing. We went everywhere but never thought of visiting the graveyards and who would have thought of that?

THE WHIRLWIND OF PRAYERS
By day three, the prayers were pouring in nonstop. Biba's name was probably mentioned more than a million times in all kinds of prayers around the world. While some imployed Mallams sitting in one corner with continuous recitation of the holy Qura'an, many did the holding of Biba's photo to pray with Holy Bible. Some did the placing of hands on television gospel channel to wish for Biba's safe return. And while some visited the rivers in the middle of the night, I took to rock climbing to pray for Biba. Maybe in my confused mind, if I am up high closer to the sky, God will hear me clearer. Some were doing akl kind of fasting; dry fasting and wet fasting. At a point, all kinds of short verses of prayers were flying across the chatrooms until Muslims were reading psalms and Christians reciting Surah. At this point our united pain knows no boundaries.

Well, the longer it took without Biba the more we  intensified prayers until we formed a whirlwind of prayers that twirled Biba's captives into confusion that she was able to run free from the graveyard away from her captives on Thursday, around 1:00a.m as they sleep. The formidable power of prayers has taken its effect and

BIBA CAME HOME ALIVE:
I am being sketchy here for security purpose.
Biba got home obviously dazed and very dirty, dusty and barefoot. No headcover, a slight bruise on her arm and very confused. She appeared dehidrated and hunted. She was bearely audible. She could only make out a sentense at a time. She said; on taking a drop from Gwarimpa to Kubuwa, 10 minutes into a twenty minutes trip, the cab driver playing Christian song, slowed down at the bridge and two men jumped into the back seat. She was immidietely alarmed and tried to question the driver harshlly but before she knew what was happening, they pulled out a gun and sprayed her with some peppery liquid, only to wake up the following morning in an uncompleted building with the kidnappers demanding for money.

POWER OF COMPASSION:
The beautiful fruit of very-ugly-pain is a united compassion that transcends beyond the blockades of age, gender, ethnicity, religion, race, national and international boundaries.

Although, we didn’t have the capability to deploy expensive technical team of rescue experts, helicopters or search dogs that were used in the rescue missions of Okonjo Iweala's mother and President Goodluck Jonathan's newphew who were at one time kidnapped.
But we certainly deployed the ONLY arsenal available in the hands of the ordinary citizens around the world -PRAYER.

This shows that there is power in prayers and there is immeasurable power in collective prayers.  When we open our hearts and let in other's pain, it has a way of pushing us beyond our limitations of time, energy, resource, and reservation. It is only when we stand up for others can we discover our hidden strengths.

LESSON LEARN:
1. That law and order on the verge of total break down in Nigera
2. That the police are overwhelmed, inefficient and ill equipped.
3. That Nigerians are in imminent and grave danger than you ever imagined.
4. That we must have each's back plus be in steadfast prayer.

ADMONITION:
We are here on earth for a purpose. Therefore, we must use our experience; maybe good or bad, to guide others through this short journey of life.

As we partake a little deeper in the pains and sufferings of others around us, we build compassion that steps over fear, that walks past discomfort, and that insists on seeing beyond personal schedules and
needs. And gradually, we build that unbreakable bond of compassion, loyalty, trust and security around us.

WAY FORWARD:
It is unbelievable the many cases of kidnapping in Abuja. Pls believe it, this tragedy can happen to any of us here in Nigeria. And hurrying to barricade yourself alone will nor help you. A collective efforts is still the best way, the cheaper way and the most impacting way.

Would you like the world to stand up for you when in trouble? Then join a community of commpassionate people and do your bit.

Let's come together to promote #CodeBiba; a citizens alert on abducted cases of pregnant women. Lets share ideas to perfect #codeBiba. Nobody deserves this horror and certainly not a pregnant woman.

Thank us all.

It is me,
Miriam Yakubu Ikunaiye, still speaking loudly so others won't be silenced.