FG: Armed Forces, Intelligence Agencies Have Clear Mandate to Rescue Abducted Kebbi Students
FG: Armed Forces, Intelligence Agencies Have Clear Mandate to Rescue Abducted Kebbi Students
•Gov urges prayers as police launch operation to free victims after bandits shoot principal, kill vice principal •Matawalle urges security to intensify search-and-rescue as ambassador opposes negotiating with terrorists •ISWAP claims it executed Brig-Gen Uba after Borno ambush
Olawale Ajimotokan, Linus Aleke in Abuja and Onuminya Innocent
The federal government, yesterday, responded to the news of abduction of female students from Government Girls Secondary School, Maga, in Danko/Wasagu Local Government Area of Kebbi State, saying the armed forces and the intelligence agencies have been issued clear mandate to locate, rescue and safely return the students. Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, disclosed this, in a statement yesterday.
Idris vowed that the federal government would ensure that the perpetrators faced justice, adding that the authorities will not relent until the objective is achieved.
A wave of terror had hit the quiet town of Maga early yesterday, when heavily armed bandits stormed the secondary school and abducted several students, leaving one staff member dead.
About 4am, the attackers, equipped with sophisticated weapons, breached the school fence and forced their way into the hostel.
Police tactical units, responding to the alarm raised, engaged the intruders in a brief gun duel. But despite the police presence, the bandits managed to scale the perimeter and whisked the students away to an undisclosed location.
In the chaos, Hassan Makuku, a vice principal was shot and killed, while the principal of the school was shot in a hand. Another employee, Ali Shehu, suffered a gunshot wound and was currently receiving medical treatment.
Kebbi State Police Public Relations Officer, CSP Nafiu Kotarkoshi, confirmed the details of the incident in a statement, adding that a massive rescue operation has been launched.
Kotarkoshi stated, “The police tactical units deployed in the school engaged them in a gun duel. Unfortunately, the suspected bandits had already scaled through the fence of the school and abducted twenty five students from their hostel to an unknown destination.”
Authorities cordoned off the area and were coordinating with local vigilante groups and neighbouring state security forces to track the abductors.
Helicopters and ground patrols were sweeping the surrounding forests and villages in a bid to locate the missing girls.
The incident sent shockwaves through Maga community and the wider Kebbi State, prompting calls for heightened security around schools and a swift governmental response.
Parents of the abducted students gathered at the school gate, pleading for the safe return of their daughters.
The attack marked the latest in a series of banditry related kidnappings that have plagued north western Nigeria in recent months, raising fresh concerns about the capacity of law enforcement agencies to protect civilians in vulnerable regions.
The information minister expressed deep concern and solidarity with the families of the female students. He said the administration shared in their pain and was firmly committed to bringing the girls home safely.
He reiterated that protecting every Nigerian, especially schoolchildren, was a solemn responsibility of the state under President Bola Tinubu.
Idris added that the administration totally condemned the reprehensible attack on innocent students and the killing of school officials, who were carrying out their noble duty.
He stated, “Our security and intelligence agencies have been issued clear directives to locate, rescue, and safely return the students, and to ensure that the perpetrators face justice. The federal government will not relent until this objective is achieved.
“We assure Nigerians that strengthening internal security remains a top priority. The federal government is re-calibrating the nation’s military, policing, and intelligence capabilities to more effectively prevent these attacks and respond with greater speed and precision whenever threats arise.”
He urged the public to remain calm and confident, and stated that the country was also reinforcing cooperation with regional partners, through ECOWAS, the African Union, and the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF), to secure its borders and disrupt terrorist and criminal networks.
Matawalle Urges Security Agencies to Intensify Search-and-Rescue Operations
Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, called for urgent and coordinated action to secure the release of the 25 schoolgirls abducted in Kebbi State.
Matawalle urged security agencies to intensify search-and-rescue operations and reaffirmed the government’s commitment to ensuring that the perpetrators were apprehended and the victims safely reunited with their families.
The minister, in a statement by Assistant Director of Information and Public Relations, Enderline Chukwu, strongly condemned the attack by bandits on the students.
He said the attack resulted in the death of the school’s Vice Principal, Malam Hassan Yakubu Makuku, and the abduction of several students.
Matawalle described the incident as unacceptable and called on all security agencies to act urgently and in concert to locate and secure the safe release of the abducted students.
The statement said, “The government, led by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has directed that the state’s security apparatus swing into immediate action to ensure the abducted students are released unharmed.
“Residents should remain calm and go about their business while the government and security agencies address the situation,” he said.
The minister also extended his condolences to the family of the late Vice Principal and to all families affected by the attack.
“I pray to Allah to grant him mercy, a peaceful resting place, and to console his family and loved ones over this painful and unjust loss.”
Kebbi Governor Appeals for Prayers
Kebbi State Governor, Nasir Idris, appealed for sustained prayers following a fresh wave of bandit attacks in the state.
Idris expressed concern over the increasing attacks by bandits, whom he said were crossing from neighbouring states and countries to carry out attacks in Kebbi villages.
He reassured the public of his administration’s commitment to finding a lasting solution to the security challenges, and providing logistics and financial support to security agencies.
The governor had hosted several conferences and summits with critical stakeholders in the country’s security system, including the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar III, and former Chiefs of Army Staff, General Christopher Musa and Lieutenant General Abdulrahaman Danbazau.
He had also provided logistics support, including 100 Hilux vehicles and 5,000 motorcycles, to security agencies in the state.
Idris visited the affected communities and urged citizens to keep the abducted students in their prayers, saying, “Bandits continue to threaten the safety and future of our children. I appeal to all Nigerians to stand with us as we pursue justice and security for every corner of Kebbi.”
Ambassador Opposes Negotiating with Terrorists
A security and intelligence expert, retired Ambassador Ejike Eze, urged governments and stakeholders to reject any form of dialogue with terrorist groups, describing such negotiations as a dangerous precedent that can encourage further attacks.
Eze, who was the APC senatorial candidate for Enugu North Senatorial District in the 2023 general election, stressed that any administration that negotiated with terrorists “negotiates away its own legitimacy”.
In an open letter to the government, Eze said, “We must shun negotiations with terrorists, worst of all, the kind of negotiation that pardons some groups while taking a hard line on others.”
He stated that the blood of citizens murdered on their farms, raped, or displaced from their communities cried out for justice.
Eze said, “Trump’s threat must be for us the catalyst— not the substitute— for our resolve as a nation. The blood of our citizens murdered on their farms, raped, or displaced from their places cries out.
“We must shun negotiations with terrorists, worst of all the negotiation that pardons some groups and takes it hard on the other. Leadership that negotiates with terrorists negotiates away its own legitimacy.”
He said the Nigerian people demanded action, not press statements.
ISWAP Claims Execution of Brig.Gen Mohammed Uba After Borno Ambush
In a related development, insurgents from Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) admitted to killing Brigadier-General Mohammed Uba.
The terrorists had ambushed a Nigerian military convoy, led by Uba, in Damboa area of Borno State on November 15, killing two soldiers and two Civilian Joint Task Force members.
But the Nigerian Army had since maintained that Uba escaped unharmed and returned to base, dismissing reports of his capture.
ISWAP countered with a statement asserting that they captured and executed Uba, releasing unverified photos.
However, security experts labelled their evidence as potential propaganda amid conflicting online narratives.
•Gov urges prayers as police launch operation to free victims after bandits shoot principal, kill vice principal •Matawalle urges security to intensify search-and-rescue as ambassador opposes negotiating with terrorists •ISWAP
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