Kebbi abduction: We can no longer go to farm, residents lament

Days after the abduction of 25 students from the Government Comprehensive Girls Secondary School, Maga, in Kebbi State, residents of the community said they cannot go to their farms because of the incident. A farmer in the community, Idris Bako, said the fear of what happened on Monday has left the community devastated, saying they […]

Days after the abduction of 25 students from the Government Comprehensive Girls Secondary School, Maga, in Kebbi State, residents of the community said they cannot go to their farms because of the incident.

A farmer in the community, Idris Bako, said the fear of what happened on Monday has left the community devastated, saying they were gripped by fear.

He said nobody expected that the community could be targeted for such an attack.

“Nobody expected that our children were being targeted for abduction. They are all innocent children, and we are very much disturbed about their condition in the hands of the bandits.

“We get more worried as the day passes by without any news about them.

“We will continue to pray that the people who were deployed to find them bring them home to us as quickly as possible,” he said.

Bako disclosed that the parents of the girls are in terrible pain over the incident, adding that, “The only way the pains can go away is for the government to help us find the children as they promised.”

A relative of one of the abducted girls, Iliyasu Zayyanu, said the mood of the family since Monday has been terrible.

“Though we are praying for the return of our girls, everybody is in mourning right now. Not just the families, but the community at large.

“Up till now, we have not heard anything about them. We’ve been waiting every day and night for them to say something, but we haven’t heard anything,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Chairman of Kebbi Development Forum (KDF), Dr Saidu Abubakar, has condemned the abduction of the girls, saying the incident has inflicted deep pain on the families affected and heightened anxiety across the state.

“We stand with the government and people of Kebbi State, particularly the Zuru Emirate, during this difficult moment, and we earnestly pray for the safe and timely rescue of the abducted students,” the statement added.

He, however, raised concerns about the circumstances surrounding the withdrawal of security personnel from the school shortly before the attack, despite earlier deployment following intelligence reports.

He said, “KDF respectfully calls the attention of the state government to the following urgent measures that could strengthen security management and prevent similar occurrences.

“These measures include pursuing an aggressive and coordinated search-and-rescue operation, initiating an independent investigation into the roles and responses of security personnel, and strengthening the Office of the Special Adviser on Security,” he said.

He called for prioritising the security of schools, empowering local government councils to fulfil their security responsibilities, converting the Zuru Airstrip into a Forward Operating Base for the Nigerian Air Force, and establishing a State Security Response and Coordination Centre.

Also, the Progressives Governors’ Forum, PGF, on Thursday, said it would give full support to security agencies to bring the abducted schoolgirls back home.

Chairman of the Forum, Sen. Hope Uzodima, was in Kebbi with other APC governors on a sympathy visit to Kebbi State Governor, Nasir Idris.