Chibok Girls: Stakeholders Berate FG, Decry Spate of Kidnapping In Schools

By Ebunoluwa Sessou

It has been 10 years after 276 girls were abducted by Boko Haram militants in the town of Chibok in Borno state in Northern Nigeria.

However, stakeholders have continued to lament over the failure of the Nigerian government to rescue the girls.

Against this background, Vanguard sampled opinions on what lessons we have learnt as a nation.

Speaking, International Human Rights Lawyer who is also the US Secretary of State awardee on International Religious Freedom, Kola Alapinni said, the spate of kidnappings of school children has not abated. In fact, it appears it has increased if we go by the figures.

“The State has failed in its primary responsibility of securing the lives and properties of its citizens.

“Also, the overt discrimination against returnee girls and their children must be addressed by the government. This has made it difficult for them to be reabsorbed into their community.

“Why has intelligence continued to fail or refused to be acted upon especially where it concerns attacks on schools and the girl-child? It is abnormal. The recent kidnappings in Kaduna State, a decade after Chibok is so poignant. How many more abductions would we have to endure?

“It is doubtful whether trying to reabsorb terrorists into the communities they once terrorised is a winning strategy against the war on terror. It seems more like an incentive for deviant behaviour and it has become counter-productive.

“Government must have a rethink. An industry seems to be thriving out of insecurity issues in our country. It is inexplicable that government has not been able to resolve this issue for almost two decades. Something is definitely not adding up”, he said.

Meanwhile, Executive Director Sustainable Gender Action Initiative, Mrs. Mufuliat Fijabi, lamented that It is a disappointment that as a country we have not been successful on having the Chibok girls back.

“While I commend the families of the girls for their resilience, the government should adopt different and more innovative strategies to ensure their return”, she said.

Source: Vanguard