Women yesterday stormed Government House Port Harcourt to protest against the abduction of eight students sitting for the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) in the Bille Community in the Degema Local Government Area of Rivers State by suspected pirates.

The students were reportedly kidnapped by the sea robbers terrorising Bille-Port Harcourt waterways alongside five other persons on May 6.

Recently, pirates hijacked three boats with goods, and kidnapped 13 passengers on the waterways, forcing the Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria, Port Harcourt Commercial District, Chairman Israel Pepple to suspend transport operations.

The women, who gathered under the umbrella of Concerned People of Bille Kingdom, said their children are currently held by the pirates in the bushes.

They said their daughters who travelled on the waterways are being assaulted by their abductors. Some of the protesters, who spoke to reporters, alleged that the heavily armed pirates also raped their daughters and dispossessed of their belongings.