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Tag: Chibok schoolgirls

  • Chibok girls are abandoned, says #BBOG

    Members of the #BringBackOurGirls advocacy group have accused the Federal Government of abandoning the remaining 112 Chibok schoolgirls to their fate.

    They said five years after the abduction of the schoolgirls, their parents were grieving without a glint of hope for the release of their daughters.

    The activists noted that similar neglect had befallen the parents of Leah Sharibu, an abducted victim of insurgents.

    #BBOG said Federal Government’s failure on the Chibok schoolgirls had become a sore point in the nation’s history.

    A representative of the group, Nifemi Onifade, stated this in a speech co-signed by fellow members of the group, Florence Ozor and Gapani Yanga.

    Onifade spoke at the fifth year anniversary of the Chibok schoolgirls’ abduction.

    He said: “They can see that the parents of our remaining schoolgirls have been wickedly forgotten and abandoned to their fate and left to grieve the loss of their children without any form of closure by the Federal Government. No serious government handles a matter like the still missing 112 schoolgirls of Chibok and Dapchi with the levity of an unending saga. The same manner of gross neglect and abandonment has also been extended to the parents of #LeahSharibu. We question the government’s silence on #LeahSharibu. We question government’s silence on the state of Alice Nggadah of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).

    “Our movement has already done everything within the power of a citizens’ group to keep the government alert to its primary responsibility of securing the lives of the Nigerian people since 2014. Our persistent advocacy was to forewarn government of the consequences of sending the wrong signals on the value Nigeria places on the lives of our citizens.

    Read Also: #BBOG kicks against secret burial of fallen soldiers

    “Today, abductions and kidnapping are rife, gruesome killings take place on repeat basis across the country and internally displaced persons (IDPs) are unable to rebuild their lives. That Nigeria has, since it failed our #Chibokgirls in 2014, degenerated to become a poster country for terrorist mayhem is the grandest shame of a nation.

    “Today, our core demand remains the same, relevant today as it has been on each of the 1811 days that we have daily turned up at the Unity Fountain pressuring two consecutive Presidents of Nigeria to rescue the remaining 112 #ChibokGirls, Leah Sharibu, Alice and others. For as long as they remain in captivity, we of the #BBOG shall continue to carry them in our hearts and make our voices resound and re-echo our cries of five years.

    “Mr President #BringBackOurGirls now and alive.”

    A former Minister of Education and leader of the group, Dr. Oby Ezekwesili, announced that she stepped down from the group when she went into politics to avoid conflict of interest.

    The former minister urged the government to tell Nigerians if the case of the Chibok girls had been closed, based on what she called the evidence gathered.

    She said: “Some people look at us and ask: have you resumed? I look at them like they don’t even get it. A person like me decided that demanding for good governance from a government that has no care to offer good governance has become a blunt instrument. So, I decided to go into politics. But consistent with the values of this organisation, as soon as I decided to go into politics, I stepped down because conflict of interest is a complete lack of integrity. Others can do it, but we cannot do it in the #BBOG.

    “The sad thing is that the failure of successive governments to treat the Chibok matter with the effectiveness required laid the foundation for the emboldening of those who have continued to terroriee our country.

    “So, whether it is what you find in Zamfara, Yobe, Borno, Plataea, among others, the terrorists became emboldened because our government failed to show that sense of the dignity of the Nigerian life.”

  • Christian, Muslim, Jewish clerics pray for Chibok schoolgirls

    The #BringBackOurGirls (BBOG) movement yesterday in Lagos rounded off a three-day global event marking the fifth anniversary of the Chibok schoolgirls’ abduction.

    Nigerian and American Christian, Muslim and Jewish clerics offered inter-faith prayers for the safe return of the abductees.

    The 276 girls were abducted by members of Boko Haram terrorist group at the Government Girls’ Secondary School in Chibok, Borno State, on the night of April 14, 2014.

    Yesterday’s event marked the fifth anniversary of the abduction.

    Of the girls, 112 are yet to be released. Others, including Leah Sharibu from Dapchi in Yobe State, are also being held.

    The advocacy group marked the event simultaneously on three continents: Lagos and Abuja in Nigeria; London in the United Kingdom as well as New York and Washington DC in the United States.

    Participants at the Lagos event – a vigil at the Falomo Roundabout in Ikoyi – included one-time Lagos State Commissioner for Finance Mr Wale Edun; #BBOG Leader Yemi Ransome-Kuti; a former president of the Civil Liberties Organisation (CLO), Ms Ayo Obe and Executive Director, Enough is Enough Nigeria (EiE), Yemi Adamolekun, among others.

    Clerics at the event included the Senior Pastor of Trinity House Church, Pastor Ituah Ighodalo; the Imam of Lighthouse Estate Mosque, the “first-ever Islamic estate in Lagos”, Alhaji Nojeem Jimoh and the former pastor of the Church of the Brethren in Chibok, Samuel Dauda.

    The event also featured the reading of a prayer written for the girls by Jewish Rabbis in New York, titled: An Interfaith Prayer for Chibok – Five Years in Captivity.

    Edun thanked the #BBOG movement for keeping the girls’ plight in Nigerians’ consciousness.

    The former commissioner urged the group and other Nigerians not to give up hope but to support the government’s efforts to bring the girls home alive.

    He said: “We are encouraged; 112 Chibok girls are missing, previously it was 276, then 217, now 112. That is certainly progress, and the Federal Government deserves the commendation, credit and encouragement to keep bringing that figure down until it is zero.

    “The President has said he is committed to bringing back all the Chibok girls as well as others who are detained against their will.

    “We need to acknowledge that very worthy commitment on his part and help him in any way we can to achieve that goal.”

    Ighodalo, who prayed God to bring back the remaining girls, urged Nigerians not to relent in their prayers for the nation.

    “Five is the number of grace. In this fifth year, the Lord will be gracious, merciful unto us… Continue to have hope; it is not over until it is over. There is hope,” he added.

    Jimoh prayed for the safe return of the girls, including Dapchi schoolgirl, Leah Sharibu.

    He noted that Boko Haram and its sister terrorist group, the ISIS, had shown by their acts that they were anti-Islam.

    Dauda, who noted that it was his first time to participate in the event, said he was nearly brought to tears by the outpouring of love for the girls.

    “I was about shedding tears,” he said.

    He urged the Federal Government to do its all to stem the insurgency.

    In London, a panel of discussants considered the topic: #BlackLivesMatter and the #BringBackOurGirls movement: Online struggle for offline justice.

    In New York, the event was marked by an overnight vigil at the Nigerian Embassy.

  • Chibok schoolgirls’ strength inspiring – UN

    Chibok schoolgirls’ strength inspiring – UN

    THE UN Deputy Secretary-General, Amina Mohammed, has described the strength of the rescued Chibok schoolgirls as “inspiring”.

    Mohammed gave the remarks while briefing the UN Security Council on her visit to Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of the Congo from July 19 to 27.

    The UN deputy chief said: “In Nigeria, we were moved by our meeting with the Chibok girls facilitated by the Honourable Minister of Women Affairs.

    “Their remarkable strength as survivors rather than victims is inspiring. Many are receiving education and psychosocial support to prepare them for reintegration.

    “But thousands of other young women who have been abducted and returned, subjected to sexual violence and affected by conflict in other ways are still to receive adequate support.

    “We also interacted with displaced women and girls who are facing exploitation and abuse in the camps. We held meetings with women leaders who underscored the need to address mental health and women’s empowerment.”

    She commended the governments of Niger, Chad, Cameroon and Nigeria for their efforts to promote stability through the Multinational Joint Task Force within the Lake Chad Basin Regional cooperation.

    According to her, international support will continue to be crucial in addressing the root causes of the crisis in very complex situations.

    “I am pleased to note that since our visit, the Acting President of Nigeria has established a Judicial Commission to investigate alleged violations of human rights by Nigerian security agencies, and to recommend ways to prevent such violations.

    “I commend this initiative and encourage the relevant authorities to include sexual- and gender-based violence within the Commission’s work.

    “The United Nations stands ready to support this important effort and also to reinforce protection measures for displaced women and girls,” Mohammed, Nigeria’s former Minister of Environment, said.

    She said in Nigeria, the eight-year conflict in the Northeast has generated a risk of famine, displaced 1.9 million people and left 8.5 million people in need of assistance.

    “These dire circumstances are being made worse by the large gap in humanitarian funding including meeting the commitments made at the Oslo Humanitarian Conference. There is an acute need for sustained and scaled up funding to avert famine in Nigeria.”

    Mohammed stressed that “one message resounds most: investing in women and girls must be central to our efforts in Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and beyond if we are to have sustainable peace and development.

    “Giving special consideration to the context will be key to responses that deliver the right results.

    “We look forward to working with national governments, regional organizations, civil society, women and girls themselves, and international partners to deliver results that will advance peace, development and dignity for all.”

    Mohammed said she was pleased to be joined by the Executive Director of UN Women and the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict – both of whom were with her at the briefing, as well as the African Union Commission’s Special Envoy on Women, Peace and Security.

    “We were four African women, from two organizations, visiting two countries, with one goal: advancing peace by advancing the equality, empowerment and well-being of women,” Mohammed said.

  • Pakistani activist Malala visits Osinbajo

    Pakistani activist Malala visits Osinbajo

    Acting President Yemi Osinbajo on Monday in Abuja, received in closed doors Pakistani rights activist for girl-child education and Nobel Peace Prize winner, Malala Yousafzai, in the Presidential Villa.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the 20-year-old Malala, who was accompanied by her father, Yousafzai and other members of the Malala Foundation, arrived at the presidential villa at about 5.30 p.m.

    The young female activist survived gunshots on her head by the Taliban for campaigning for girl-child education in Pakistan.

    She had visited Nigeria in July, 2014 where she campaigned for the release of Chibok schoolgirls who were abducted by Boko Haram insurgents.

    During the visit, Malala met then President Goodluck Jonathan and parents of the more than 230 captured Chibok schoolgirls.

  • Tinubu calls for special care for released Chibok schoolgirls

    Tinubu calls for special care for released Chibok schoolgirls

    A former Lagos State Governor, Sen. Bola Tinubu, on Monday called for special and adequate care for the released Chibok schoolgirls, to help them overcome the sad experience they had to suffer while in captivity.

    Tinubu made the call in a message in Lagos to congratulate President Muhammadu Buhari and Nigerians over the release of more of the abducted Chibok schoolgirls

    He urged the government to help the families of the girls to nurture them, for their proper reintegration into the society.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that 82 of the over 200 girls abducted from Government Girls Secondary School, Chibok, Borno by Boko Haram in April 2014 were released by the sect on Saturday following negotiations with the federal government.

    The sect had earlier released 21 of the abducted girls in October 2016.

    Tinubu said: “I congratulate President Buhari and Nigerians over the release of more of the abducted Chibok schoolgirls.

    “This shows President Buhari’s unwavering commitment to freeing these and other innocent children from the cruel hand of Boko Haram and returning them to their families and community.

    “Yet, we must keep this good news in proper context. The released children need to be nurtured and cared for in a special way in order to overcome the sad experience that they had to suffer.

    “Moreover, we must not forget the girls still held by Boko Haram and we must not forget the grief of their families.

    “We owe it to them to press forward until all the girls have regained freedom and Boko Haram is so defeated that it may never again be able to do what it did in Chibok.

    “Boko Haram must be defeated. President Buhari has said as much.  We all must stand with him and support his strategy to accomplish this humane and necessary goal,” he said.

    The All Progressives Congress (APC) national leader said the release of the girls showed that President Buhari had kept his eye on the true objective to reunite families and communities under the reign of peace and rule of justice.

    According to him, the northern Nigeria, and Nigeria as a whole, may begin to rebuild in a way that brings a decent life and a taste of enduring prosperity to all Nigerians.

    “This is the ultimate goal, and the release of these girls is an important step on this pathway.

    “I congratulate the President. I congratulate our gallant armed forces.  After waiting so long for the return of their children, the parents of these girls must feel a great sense of relief and elation,” Tinubu said.

     

  • Chibok schoolgirls rescue may take years, says defence minister

    Chibok schoolgirls rescue may take years, says defence minister

    IT may take years to find all the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapped by Boko Haram on April 14, 2014, Defence Minister Brig.-Gen. Mansur Ali has said.
    Boko Haram insurgents invaded the all-girls Government Secondary School in Chibok, Borno State and forcefully took away 276 pupils.
    Three years after the abduction, the insurgents are still holding on to 195 of the girls, with the Federal Government expressing readiness to negotiate their freedom.
    Speaking to VOA’s Hausa Service, monitored in Yola yesterday, Brig.-Gen Ali, said the military was committed to finding the girls and still combing Boko Haram hideouts in the Sambisa Forest.
    He likened the troops’ inability to find the girls despite retaking most of the territories initially occupied by Boko Haram to the United States (U.S.) efforts to find Osama bin Laden after the invasion of Afghanistan.
    The minister said: “It took the U.S. up to seven, eight, up to 10 years before they could get to bin Laden. We are continuing our campaign in the Sambisa Forest in all its nooks and corners.”
    Some activists under the auspices of the Bring Back Our Girls (BBOG) group demanded more from the Federal Government to free the girls during the third anniversary of the girls’ abductions.
    In his statement to mark the abduction’s anniversary, President Muhammed Buhari pledged that his administration will do everything possible to ensure the freedom of the girls.
    In 2014, Boko Haram seized control of about 14 local government areas in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states. They have since lost virtually all the territory under their hold to the Multi-National Joint Task Force (MNJTF).
    But despite the success, the government’s inability to find the remaining 195 schoolgirls has overshadowed the military gains.
    Reacting to the abduction on the VOA programme, an Islamic cleric, Nuru Khalid, a member of the influential Interfaith group raised to ensure peace between Muslims and Christians, said failure to find the girls would translate into a victory for Boko Haram.
    “We can never allow the terrorists to win the war. If they got (away) free with those girls, then they have relatively won the war”, he said.
    Also, a human rights’ lawyer, Bulama Bukar, said the government needs to address the psychological trauma suffered by the families of the missing girls and other victims of Boko Haram brutality.
    “Married women have been made single again; kids have been orphaned; homeowners are without shelter; Nigerians have been turned into refugees in their own homeland,” he said.

  • UN remembers Chibok schoolgirls on Int’l Women’s Day

    UN remembers Chibok schoolgirls on Int’l Women’s Day

    The UN Deputy Secretary-General, Ms Amina Mohammed, has called on the international community to remember the Chibok schoolgirls and thousands of other women abducted by the Boko Haram terrorists.

    Mohammed stated this in her speech to commemorate the 2017 International Women’s Day at the UN Headquarters in New York.

    “Today let us save a thought for the Chibok girls.

    “And the thousands of women and girls that have been lost to the horror of terrorism and extreme violence and conflict,” Mohammed said.

    The Deputy UN chief described Women’s Day as the most important Day,  saying ” every day, in every way, we must celebrate women.

    According to her, the 2030 Agenda recognises that women and girls are indispensable for durable peace, true justice and sustainable development.

    She said the clock to ‘Planet 50-50 by 2030’ was ticking “and we women are impatient; now, with your help, we need to get to work”.

    “Women’s rights and opportunities are consistently neglected and even under threat – in all regions. Sexism and misogyny are alive and thriving.

    “Everywhere, we see tradition, cultural values and religion being used to hold women and girls back. Their rights over their own bodies are questioned and undermined.

    “Women and girls are routinely targeted for intimidation and harassment online and in real life. Violence against women and girls is a continuing pandemic.

    “Extremists and terrorists preach the subjugation of women and girls. And they are fleeing in record numbers. Half the world’s 244 million migrants and 19.6 million refugees are female,” she said.

    The UN deputy scribe pointed out the pernicious influences of entrenched habits and attitudes of too many societies and, unfortunately, too many men.

    “Just look around at who are sitting in governments and in boardrooms. Do you see equality? Rarely”.

    According to her, that was why the Secretary-General António Guterres has been very clear about his commitment to work for gender parity at the UN, and for justice and opportunity for women and girls around the world.

    Mohammed said when women participate fully in the labour force, the society sees dynamism and growth.

    “And so that is why we absolutely must fight for Planet 50-50 by 2030.

    “The Secretary-General and myself, and everyone on this podium, are committed to do everything we can to achieve this objective.

    “I am also humbled to be in a role where I can help inspire action for gender equality and empowerment of women and girls,”  Mohammed said

     

  • #BBOG to mark Chibok schoolgirls 1000 days with march on Villa

    #BBOG to mark Chibok schoolgirls 1000 days with march on Villa

    Members of the #BringBackOurGirls (#BBOG) advocacy have planned a series of protests including a march on the Presidential Villa in Abuja, to mark the Chibok schoolgirls’ 1000 days in captivity.
    The March which is part of the #Day 1000 Global week of action will commence on January 8 and end on January 14.
    A statement by Dr. Oby Ezekwesili and Ms Aisha Yesufu, said they would present their disappointments before President Muhammadu Buhari.
    The marches will also include the advocacy for the Military, Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), corruption, endangered education etc.
    The statement said: “On Sunday 8 January 2017, it will be #Day1000 since 276 Chibok schoolgirls were abducted in their school by terrorists on the night of 14-15 April 2014. A total of 57 escaped within days of the abduction, 219 were taken to captivity. In 2016, 2 escaped at various times and 21 returned. At present, 196 Chibok girls remain missing today for 995 days. This Sunday 8 January, will be their 1000th day in captivity, in the hands of terrorists.
    “Ten weeks ago when the 21 Chibok girls returned, the Nigerian government said they were having discussions and that “soon” 83 more would return. Nothing has been said of them since then. The title of our #Day500 statement which was as far back as 27 August 2015 was “500 days is too long”. It is most unfortunate that another 500 days on, we are still on the same matter with more than 89 per cent of the abducted girls still left by the government of Nigeria with terrorists.
    “It would be recalled that in August – September 2016, when there was unnerving quiet by the Federal Government in the wake of the release of our Chibok Girls’ “Plea-for-Rescue” video, our movement engaged in a series of activities to compel necessary action and communication.
    “Our movement is justifiably worried that the Nigerian government has once again relapsed to the same complacency, lethargy, and inertia that has been recurrent on this tragedy. What else explains the fact that despite all assurances that another 83 of our Chibok girls were under negotiation for release “soonest” there has been no further communication on the status of their release? We are doubly disappointed that the Federal Government contradicted itself by the recent declaration and celebration of capture of Sambisa Forest as the end of the war. This action is contrary to the pledge that the President and the military made repeatedly made on several occasions that they would not declare victory without the rescue of our Chibok girls and all other abducted victims of terrorist abduction.
    “With no additional rescue of any of our Chibok girls since 13 October 2016, what conclusion should parents, the Chibok community, our movement, the Nigerian public and the world at large draw from the fact that our President and military are celebrating “the capture of Sambisa ‘Camp Zero’”, the same stronghold in which it stated the girls were held and the 21 schoolgirls were released from in October?

  • ‘Chibok schoolgirl’s child not for Boko Haram’

    ‘Chibok schoolgirl’s child not for Boko Haram’

    One of the Chibok schoolgirls that came back with a child was already pregnant before she was abducted along with 219 other girls by Boko Haram gunmen on 14 April 2014.

    A source close to negotiations to free the remaining schoolgirls told NAN that there was no truth whatsoever in stories making the rounds that the girl was impregnated by one of her Boko Haram abductors.

    The informed source clarified that contrary to some media reports, the girl had conceived before her abduction after being properly married.

    “The girl and her parents have confirmed this. The child is not a Boko Haram Child,’’he said.

    The source also debunked stories that one of the girls came back pregnant, with some reports specifically saying one was four months pregnant.

    The NAN source trashed the stories as unfounded.

    “None of the girls released was sexually harassed or abused while in captivity by their abductors,” he said.

    “The current state of the girls is a source of joy as they are receiving the best medical, psychological and other forms of support from the authorities as directed by the Federal Government

    “All groups including the families, The Bring Back Our Girls (BBOG) and Chibok Community are happy with their condition as medical experts work to address their health conditions.

    “The girls have been visited by members of International Committee of the Red Cross, which played a great role in getting the girls freed.

    “It is obvious to everyone that having been in captivity, the girls were traumatised but since their release, they are showing signs of recovering well,’’ he said.

    Rumours, speculative reports about the state of the 21 released Boko Haram captives, are said to be creating stumbling blocks to further talks with the insurgents.

    The insurgents were said to be angry with Government for breaching some understanding reached with them when the 21 girls were being handed over 13 october.

    However, government sources have denied any link with various speculative reports, especially in the social media.

  • ‘100 Chibok schoolgirls not ready to leave Boko Haram captors’

    ‘100 Chibok schoolgirls not ready to leave Boko Haram captors’

    A community leader involved in the negotiations to obtain the release of the Chibok schoolgirls has said more than 100 of the girls are unwilling to return home.

    After 21 of the girls were released last week, the Federal Government is negotiating the release of another 83.

    But Pogu Bitrus, Chairman of the Chibok Development Association, said more than 100 others appeared unwilling to leave their captors, according to a report published by The Mail online.

    He was quoted as saying that they were ashamed to return home because they were forced to marry extremists and have their babies.

    According to Bitrus, the freed girls told their parents they were separated into two groups early on in their captivity and given the choice of joining the extremists and embracing Islam, or becoming their slaves.

    The latter group – made up of 104 girls – never saw their classmates again.

    Mr. Bitrus said they were used as domestic workers and porters but were not sexually abused. That group contains the 21 who were released last week and the 83 who the government said it is negotiating over.

    He said the 21 girls freed last week might have to be educated abroad because of the stigma they will face in Nigeria, adding that six more died during their 30-month captivity, according to the girls.

    The chairman said many of those who escaped two years ago were taunted as ‘Boko Haram wives’ by people in Chibok and had moved away. At least 20 were being educated in the United States.

    “We would prefer they are taken away from the community and this country because the stigmatisation is going to affect them for the rest of their lives.

    “Even someone believed to have been abused by Boko Haram would be seen in a bad light,” he said.

    One Chibok girl, Amina Ali Nkeki, escaped in May this year.

    Yakubu Nkeki, Chairman of the Chibok Parents’ Association, said Amina has been reunited with the 21 freed girls, who were still being treated by doctors, psychologists and trauma counselors at a hospital in Abuja.