Rescue our Children from Kidnappers, Father of Abducted Girls Appeals to FG, Niger

• Female school teacher among those kidnapped

By Laleye Dipo

The father of five of the abducted girls in Salihu Tanko Islamiyya School in Tegina Rafi Local Government Area of Niger State, Ali Mohammed, a tipper driver, has appealed to the state and federal governments to rescue the pupils from the kidnappers.

Speaking in an interview with THISDAY Monday, Mohammed said no fewer than 25 of the bandits stormed the school and took away the pupils to an unknown destination.

According to him, the school had a population of over 200 pupils with more than half of the population being girls, adding that most of the kidnapped pupils are girls.

“It is a school where Western and Islamic education are being taught,” he said.

He stated that the Deputy Head Teacher, Safiya Alhassan, was also abducted as she was in the school when the incident occurred, adding that the Head Teacher, Malam Garba Alhassan, was reported to be in the town.

Mohammed wondered why policemen, whose station is located a few meters from the school, could not rescue the pupils from the kidnappers.

He said the girls were made to trek in batches, while the bandits followed them on motorcycles until the pupils were taken behind the rocks outside the town “where we suspect they are being kept”.

Meanwhile, THISDAY learnt that the bandits again stormed Tegina town on Monday sacking homes and shops in search of food for their abductees, in the process making people to run helter skelter as the gunmen moved freely in the town.

It was gathered that at neighbouring Beri village, another group of armed men sacked the community Monday morning killing a riot policeman in the process.

The Niger State Government and the senator representing Niger East Senatorial zone in the National Assembly, Senator Sani Musa, in separate statements condemned Sunday’s attack on Tegina town and the abduction of the pupils and asked the bandits to immediately release those in their custody.

In his statement, Musa described the incident “as callous and unfortunate” before asking the federal government to strengthen security in Niger State, particularly in areas where bandits have been terrorizing the people.

“My heart goes out to the victims and all those affected by this horrific attack in our senatorial district. I stand with the people of Tegina at this tragic and difficult time,” Musa said.

The state government, in its statement, expressed outrage at the escalating level of banditry in the state and also asked the federal government to take prompt action to salvage the situation.

“The situation has reached crisis level. In fact it’s a war situation that we have to confront without further delay,” Governor Abubakar Sani Bello said in a statement signed by his Chief Press Secretary, Mary Noel Berje.

Bello described the incident as unfortunate and unbecoming the serial attacks in the state, adding that: “The Joint Military Taskforce has been mobilised and are already tracing the tracks of the criminals for possible isolation and ambush.”

The statement said government has also embarked on the conduct of house-to-house head count to ascertain the exact number of children abducted.