We’ll Ensure Leah Sharibu, Aid Workers’ Release, FG Assures Their Families

By Olawale Ajimotokan in Abuja

The federal government has assured the families of Leah Sharibu and the two aid workers abducted by Boko Haram that it would leave no stone unturned to secure their release.
Boko Haram has threatened to kill Leah Sharibu, a schoolgirl, kidnapped in Dapchi on February 19, 2018, and the aid workers by October 15, if the federal government failed to meet their demands.

Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, gave the assurance on their freedom, in a statement he issued on Saturday.
Mohammed is leading a three-man
federal delegation to Maiduguri in Borno State and Dapchi in Yobe State to negotiate the release of the girls.
He said President Muhammadu Buhari detailed the delegation to the two states as a follow-up to his telephone conversation with Leah’s mother few days ago. He said that government would not relax until Leah was reunited with her family.
The other persons in the federal delegation to the restive north-east, included the Minister of State for Industry, Trade and Investment, who also supervises the Women Affairs Ministry, Hajiya Aisha Abubakar, and the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Hajiya Khadija Abba Bukar Ibrahim.

The meeting that was full of emotions, was held on Friday night in Dapchi and was attended by Leah’s mother, Mrs Rebecca Sharibu, and other members of their family.
The statement said visibly excited students of the Government Girls Science and Technical College, Dapchi, from where Leah and about 109 of her colleagues were abducted, trooped out to welcome the delegation when the chopper that ferried them to Dapchi, landed in the school premises.

The delegation had also earlier met with the families of the three aid workers, who were abducted in March 2018.
The two captive aid workers were Alice Loksha and Amina Liman, while the third aid worker, Saifura Hussaini Ahmed, was killed by her abductors last month.
The meeting with their families was held in the Borno State Government House, Maiduguri.
Mohammed reassured them of government’s efforts to secure the release of Loksha and Liman. He also condoled with Saifura Ahmed’s parents.

The Deputy Governor of Borno, Alhaji Usman Durkwa, who received the delegation, expressed gratitude to President Buhari for sending the delegation to the state, saying it reflected his leadership character.
Mohammed described the moment as a trying time for the government and people of Borno State. He also lauded the government’s resilience in tackling the challenges arising from the Boko Haram insurgency.