Nigeria’s captain John Mikel Obi has spoken out after the kidnapping of his father for the second time in seven years.
Mikel was told his father had been kidnapped four hours before their 2-1 loss to Argentina.
‘For the second time I’ve had to live with the fears of losing my father and it is very scary’.
‘Today it’s my dad but tomorrow it could be someone else which makes it very scary’, he said in an interview with BBC Sport.
Mikel did not tell anyone when he was informed of his father’s kidnapping because he did not want it to distract the teams.
The kidnappers left Mikel’s father in their hideout when a gun battle ensued between them and the police.
The kidnappers were demanding 10 million naira (GHC 134, 304.27) before they release and it has been reported he might have paid the ransom.
In August 2011, Obi was kidnapped for the first time and this is the second time he has been kidnapped.
‘My father was hurt and tortured during his ordeal and this is unacceptable. I hope that the authorities will work harder to bring this bandits to justice’.
He has also called on the government to continue its efforts to fight ‘insecurity’ in the country.