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Tag: Leah Sharibu

  • Leah Sharibu: Parents confirm voice

    … Her voice and Picture has rekindled our hope – Parents

     

    The Parents of Leah Sharibu, the only girl still held captive by Boko Haram insurgents amongst other school girls abducted at Government Girls Science and Technical College Dapchi have confirmed the voice from an audio message from an Online publication, The Cable as that of Leah, their daughter.

    The Nation reports that Leah Sheribu’s audio message was published by The Cable online news platform with her recent picture wearing a brown hijab dress.

    In the message, Leah made an appeal for her release from Boko Haram captivity.

    The audio is translated thus:

    I am Leah Sharibu, the girl that was abducted in GGSS Dapchi. I am calling on the government and people of goodwill to intervene to get me out of my current situation.

    “I also plead to the members of the public to help my mother, my father, my younger brother and relatives. Kindly help me out of my predicament. I am begging you to treat me with compassion, I am calling on the government, particularly, the president to pity me and get me out of this serious situation. Thank you.”

    Our reporter called Leah’s parents to confirm the veracity of the voice and both were in agreement that it is their daughter, Leah’s voice.

    Both Mr. Nathan Sheribu and his wife Rebecca told our correspondent on phone that their hope has been re-iginited by the recent development having heard their daughters voice and seeing her recent picture.

    Read Also: Government keeping mum on Leah Sharibu – Father

    “I can confirm to you that the voice that spoke is that of my daughter Leah. It is her voice no doubt. I am happy that I can hear my daughter speak. This has giving me hope that she is alive. I am also happy to see her recent picture displayed.

    “My request is the same with my daughter. The government should play their part now by intensifying efforts to secure her freedom” Nathan said.

    For the mother, her hope never died, though it has now doubled. She will however become happier the day her daughter is free.

    Like her husband, Mrs Sheribu also called on President Muhammadu Buhari to without delay swing into action to free her daughter.

    She also called on her daughter’s captors to unconditionally release her daughter to her so as to save her from the trauma she is going through.

    The Nation reports that Leah along with her school mates were abducted in February from their school. Her mates were however released after one month but Leah was held back by the insurgents for the reason that she refused to renounce Christianity, her faith.

    In the last seven months, there have been doubts as to whether she was still alive as well as whether she was still holding on to her Christian faith.

    More than a month ago, the Excutive Director of Complete Care Foundation, Barr. Aisha Wakil popular known as Mama Boko Haram told reporters in Maiduguri that Leah was still alive hold on to her Christian faith.

    “I am really worried about Leah Sharibu and her freedom from Boko Haram is very important to me. Leah did not renounced her faith in Christianity, that I can assure you and we shall do everything with both the government and the international orgamisation to ensure she regain her freedom just like her colleagues that were reunited with her families,” Mama Boko Haram said.

    Today’s development has gone to vindicate her statement of the proof of life of the innocent girl still held by the insurgents in the last seven months.

  • CAN’s statement on Leah Sharibu counter-productive, says Oloyede

    The Secretary-General of the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA), Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, yesterday described the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) statement that there might be a religious war if Leah Sharibu dies in Boko Haram captivity, as “destructive and counter-productive.”

    Adebayo Oladeji, the spokesman of CAN President Samson Ayokunle, had said: “Leah Sharibu must not die. Her death, God forbids, can spell doom for Nigeria. It can give an open invitation to religious war because Leah is being detained purely because of her religion.”

    Oloyede said he was as astonished as the Sultan of Sokoto and President-General of the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA), Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar.

    According to him, religious leaders should realise that devilish tactics are not compatible with religious responsibilities.

    Oloyede spoke at the first Ramadan Lecture organised by the Right Development Limited, publishers of The Point Newspaper at LTV Combo Hall, Ikeja, Lagos.

    The theme of the lecture is “Achieving peace, stability and good governance in a multi-ethnic and multi-religious society: The Islamic perspective.”

    He urged religious leaders to dedicate themselves to the promotion of truth, peace and justice rather than utilising sacred trust for an evil cause, for God does not accept filthy offerings as a genuine sacrifice.

    According to him, the NSCIA had reached out to Boko Haram to facilitate the release of Leah Sharibu.

    Oloyede, the Registrar/Chief Executive of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), also urged religious leaders to stop promoting crisis in the country.

    He said: “Boko Haram has never hidden its mission of setting Nigeria ablaze through a religious war. Whose interest was the call to serve? Definitely, not that of the innocent Nigerian lady, Leah Sharibu. Is it fair, religious or Godly to, for the sake of political grandstanding and publicity-seeking, endangering the life of such a precious, principled and promising Lady?

    “I am sure the immediate family members of the lady would not subscribe to such politicisation of the misfortune. The unfortunate abduction of Leah and other girls, both Muslims and Christians, is intensely hurtful to all right-thinking persons. I am aware that the particular case of Leah made the leadership of the NSCIA reach out to all possible channels of reaching the group with a proposal to secure amnesty for the group provided Leah and other girls in captivity are released and the group surrender their arms. This knowledge made the careless threat particularly painful.”

    The NSCIA scribe expressed regret that religious leaders in the country had derailed from the ways of God.

    He enjoined religious leaders in Nigeria to make concerted efforts to properly guide their followers in order to enhance peace and unity of the country.

    “It is time religious leaders in this country knew that playing politics with religion will amount to serious punishment from God. Most clerics today, manipulate things in their favour, hence disturbing the peace of our society. This is not limited to any religion; it goes to both Christian and Muslim leaders in this country. Look at the Benue crisis, for instance, some religious leaders were quick to relate it to religious war, and this can lead to war. Likewise, the case of Leah Sharibu was also tagged to be a religious issue. All these will not improve, but amount to a crisis in our society,” he said.

    Chairman on the occasion and the Baba Adeen of Yorubaland, Edo and Delta states, Chief Sarafa Tunji Ishola, said the term “Islamic terrorism” used in certain quarters was a misnomer and part of the efforts to paint the Islamic religion in bad light.

    Ishola described Islam as a religion of peace, which ensures justice for all human beings.

    National Amirah of The Criterion, an association of Muslim Women in Business and Professions, Alhaja Fatimat Oyefeso called for tolerance between religious groups in the country.

    This, Alhaja Oyefeso said, will engender peaceful and harmonious society.

    According to her, Islam is a complete way of life.

    “Just follow its tenets and the world will be peaceful,” she said.

  • Leah Sharibu’s father: we’ve been abandoned

    The father of Leah Sharibu, the only Dapchi girl still in Boko Haram custody, 83 days after,  yesterday accused the government of abandoning her family and not communicating with them on efforts to secure her freedom.

    Mr Nathan Sharibu, who said his wife and Leah’s mother cried yesterday on the abducted girl’s 15th birthday, spoke on a radio programme monitored in Abuja.

    He said: “It is very sad and the family is very weak. The mother was even crying this morning because today is her birthday. She is 15 years old today and we are very sad about her absence.”

    He added:”To be honest, I have not received any support from the government but from the community and church members, I thank God because they have been encouraging me, lifting me through their prayers,  visitation and words of advice.

    “I have not heard anything from Federal, state and local governments since my daughter was abducted. I am even confused now.

    “I need your assistance to put pressure on  the Federal Government to do something about the release of my daughter,” he said.

    Also yeaterday, members of the #BringBackOurGirls (#BBOG) advocacy group expressed sadness over Leah’s continuous stay in captivity.

    Members of the group have also accused the Federal Government of abandoning Leah’s family, community and refusing to provide Nigerians with updates on her release.

    In a statement yesterday signed by leaders of the group, Dr. Oby Ezekwesili, Aisha Yesufu and Florence Ozor, to mark Leah’s 15th birthday, said there was no reason why the arrangement by the government on the other girls release would have left Leah out.

    They said:  “Today is Day 83 since 110 schoolgirls of Government Science and Technical College, Dapchi were abducted in their school on the evening of 19th February 2018. On 21 March, 104 were returned by the terrorists by an arrangement with the Federal Government, five others are not accounted for by the government. Leah Sharibu, the only #DapchiGirl who remains in captivity (for refusing to renounce her faith and convert to another religion) turns 15 years of age today.

    “Our movement is extremely saddened and distraught on this 83rd day of her captivity, and the fact that the young teenager has had to mark her birthday in captivity with terrorists.

    “#BringBackOurGirls is equally exasperated at the Federal Government that has abandoned the family of Leah Sharibu (and the families of the 5 others.) The Federal Government has not reached out to the families of the 5 #DapchiGirls, nor accounted for them.

    “Our movement wishes Leah Sharibu a happy birthday. We also demand a status update from the Federal Government on Leah Sharibu. It is unconscionable that the family, community, and the public has gotten no updates since the Federal Government made empty promises in March about prioritising her return. We call on the federal government to return her immediately. There is no reason any arrangements with the terrorists should have left her out, in the first place.”

  • Government keeping mum on Leah Sharibu – Father

    The father of Leah Sharibu has accused the Federal Government of keeping quiet over her continuous captivity.

    Sharibu Nathan said the family is sad and confused that nothing has been done or said by the local, state and federal government to secure the release of their daughter.

    He said Leah’s mother cried because Monday (May 14) is the girl’s 15th birthday but she is not home with her family members to mark the occasion

    Leah’s father stated these during a live programme on radio Monday.

    The girl and over 100 other students were abducted by Boko Haram militants from the Government Girls Science and Technical College, Dapchi, Yobe State, on February 19.

    He said: “It is very sad and the family is very weak. The mother was even crying this morning because today is her birthday. She is 15 years old today and we are very sad about her absence.”

    On the kind of support the family has received from the government, community and colleagues, Nathan said: “To be honest, I have not received any support from the government but from the community and church members. I thank God because they have been encouraging me, lifting me through their prayers, visitation and words of advice.”

    “I have not heard anything from federal, state and local government since my daughter was abducted. I am even confused now.

    “I need your assistance to put pressure on the federal government to do something about the release of my daughter.”

  • Special global prayers to mark Leah Sharibu’s 15th birthday

    Christian groups in Nigeria, United States, United Kingdom and other parts of the world are conducting special prayers to ‘celebrate’ the 15th birthday of Leah Sharibu on Monday.

    14 year -old Leah Sharibu was one of 110 girls abducted by the Al Barnawi faction of   Boko Haram  on 19 February 2018 from the Government Girls Science and Technical College in Dapchi, Yobe State.

    Statements sent to The Nation by US-based rights activist, Mr. Emmanuel Ogebe and Khataza Gondwe , the Team Leader, Africa and Middle East of UK-based Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) which works for religious freedom through advocacy and human right , in the pursuit of justice confirm the involvement of several groups and individuals across the world.

    “Monday 14 May will be Leah’s 15th birthday, and CSW has planned a solidarity action to raise the profile of her case.

    “We will be sending out an official tweet to mark the day, which we are asking people to retweet so we can get #FreeLeah trending; we are also asking people to send their own tweets using #FreeLeah along with #Dapchgirls, and if possible , attaching a picture of themselves holding A4 or A3 signs with the words “#FreeLeah” on them, which we will  retweet.

    “Similar actions can also be taken via Facebook; please join us in standing in solidarity with  this courageous young girl , in calling for her release and in upholding her right to freedom of religion or belief  and to education, and please spread the word so others join in too,” Christian Solidarity Worldwide stated .

    US-based lawyer , Emmanuel Ogebe who had himself suffered detention under the Abacha administration emphasized that many prayer groups are hopeful that God can touch the heart of Leah’s captors, adding that other Nigerians should join in the global prayer efforts.

    “Monday May 14th will be Leah Sharibu’s birthday; imagine for a moment your daughter or son celebrating their 15th birthday in captivity under the hands of Boko Haram terrorists .

    “Leah could have been freed on March 21st, 2018 but instead, she chose not to deny Christ and is now in captivity due to her faith in Jesus Christ; because of the uncommon courage for a girl her age, Leah’s case now represents a defining moment in the persecution of Christians in Nigeria and around the world.

    “Let us join in marking Leah’s birthday by praying and working together for her release ; let us also remember the Chibok girls and many others, both Christian and Muslim, also kidnapped by Boko Haram and still in captivity.

    “Through God’s mercy and grace, may they soon all be set free; Psalm 125:1-2 says those who trust in the LORD are like Mount Zion, which cannot be moved, but abides forever .

    “As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the LORD surrounds his people, from this time forth and forevermore,”.

    Following the 19 February 2018 abduction of 110 girls by  Boko Haram from the Government Girls Science and Technical College in Dapchi , Yobe State, it returned 104 girls on 21 March,  along with two other abductees , a male and female minor.

    The move   followed the conclusion of an agreement with the government that saw armed forces withdraw from the town, allowing the terrorists unhindered access.

    The returning students confirmed that five of the younger students had died during their arduous journey to the terrorists’ camp  and had been buried in the bush.

    They also confirmed that Leah, the sole Christian among them, had been “held back on religious grounds” due to her refusal to renounce her faith and put on a hijab .

    Her friends begged her to pretend to convert so they could all return home together , but she said she could not live with herself if she did that.

    As they left Leah sent a message to her mother, Rebecca Sharibu, asking for prayer for the will of God to be done in her life.

     In a comment to Nigerian media her father Nathan Sharibu said: “They gave her the option  of converting in order  to be released but she said she will never become a  Muslim.

    “ I am very sad… but I’m also jubilating too because my daughter did not denounce Christ”

    Leah’s mother , who was in deep shock, later added: “Even if they shoot Leah there , we believe that she will be with Christ Jesus.”

  • 47 days of captivity: NCWS calls for Leah Sharibu’s release

    The National Council of Women’s Societies (NCWS) on Thursday appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari to do everything possible to ensure the release of Leah Sharibu.

    Mrs Gloria Laraba Shoda, the President, NCWS, said that Leah Sharibu was the only Dapchi schoolgirl yet to be released by the Boko Haram insurgents 47 days after the other schoolgirls were released.

    The News men reports that 110 female students from Government Girls Science and Technical College (GGSTC) in Dapchi, Yobe, were abducted by Boko Haram insurgents on Feb. 19, 2018.

    The insurgents released 104 of them to their families and school authorities on March 21, after they had spent one month and two days with their abductors.

    They, however, kept Leah Sharibu in their custody, alleging that she refused to convert from Christianity to Islam.

    The NCWS president said the Federal Government’s rapid response that ensured the release of 104 other kidnapped female students was very commendable.

    She, however, added that the delay in releasing the only Christian girl among the 104 captives had become very worrisome.

    Read Also: Rescue of Chibok girls, Leah Sharibu a must, says Saraki

    According to Shoda, it has been 47 days since the release of the other 104 girls, but no news of Leah Sharibu.

    “As mothers, the council is worried not knowing what her condition is and Nigerian women are praying to God to keep her safe.

    “I want to believe that we all have freedom of worship. For a girl of 15 years to continuously be held captive for holding on to her faith is worrisome and I fear for this country.

    “We are not forgetting the over 200 Chibok girls that were abducted in 2014 and over 100 that are yet to be released.

    “This is not good for our country. We as citizens should have faith in our government to ensure our security.

    “We are therefore calling on government at all levels to work harder to ensure the release of our daughters’’ she said.

    NAN

     

  • Freedom of Leah: CAN declares peaceful protest, prayers

    The Christian Association of Nigeria ( CAN ) has declared intention to embark on peaceful protest and prayers against unending killings and freedom of Leah Sharibu and Chibok school girls on Sunday, April 29.

    CAN made the declaration in a statement following the killing of two Catholic priests; Rev.Fr Joseph Gor, Rev.Fr Felix Tyolaha and 17 worshippers of St. Ignatius Quasi Parish, Ukpor-Mbalom, Gwer East LGA of Benue State.

    The statement signed by Pastor Adebayo Oladeji, Special Assistant on Media and Communications to the CAN President, Rev Samson Ayokunle, on Wednesday in Abuja, described the killing as an Anomie.

    He said that the protest is going to hold in every church’s premises to ask the Federal Government and the security agencies to stop the unending killings and bloodshed in the country.

    Oladeji urges all and sundry to continue to pray for peace and tranquility of Nigeria and most importantly, for the parents and relations of all abducted school children.

    He called on Christians to also pray for the bereaved families of those attacked by the Boko Haram terrorists, armed herdsmen, bandits and other criminals.

    He reminded Christians across the federation the importance of the forthcoming general elections and the need for them to fully participate by going to obtain their voters cards.

    The cleric noted that Christians were expected to carry placards on April 29 with inscriptions meant to address issues about sustained killings, attacks and destruction of their property in Nigeria.

    The inscriptions on placards would read enough of bloodshed in Nigeria; enough of unlawful killings in the country, FG, Release Leah Sharibu from bondage, FG, Stop Herdsmen Killings and CAN reject insecurity.

    “We call upon the government to perform their constitutional responsibility of protecting citizens now.

    “No excuse should be given for this wicked act again and perpetrators must be brought to book now,’’ he said.

    Oladeji appealed to the government to mount different effective plans aimed at disarming herdsmen across the northern states and in communities where they have been wreaking havoc across the country.

    He noted that the failure to raise an effective campaign against the killings by herdsmen was the reason they have continued to kill, adding that there was need for visible plan to pacify the aggrieved.

    He also called on the heads of the security agencies to wake up to their constitutional role of protecting lives and property across the federation.

    The CAN official stressed the need for the government to prevent Nigeria from descending into a lawless country.

    He recalled with pains, disappointments, and worries how Nigerians in the North East, Middle Belt and southern parts of Nigeria became endangered with attacks from Boko Haram, herders and bandits.

    “It contends that such developments are not only inimical to the progress and development of Nigeria, they will continue to weaken the unity of the country, if left unchecked,’’ he said.

    NAN

  • Rescue of Chibok girls, Leah Sharibu a must, says Saraki

    SENATE President Bukola Saraki has called for concerted efforts by governments, security agencies, religious and community leaders to rescue the remaining 112 Chibok Girls and the Dapchi school girl, Leah Sharibu, from Boko Haram’s captivity.

    Saraki, in a statement by his Special Adviser, Media and Publicity, Yusuph Olaniyonu, in Abuja, said even though four years have elapsed since the sad incident of the Chibok girls’ kidnap, it must not dampen efforts being made to see the girls rescued and reunited with their families and loved ones.

    He noted with sadness the plight of the  Chibok parents, whose girls are not back and the anxiety they have had to endure.

    He called on the parents to remain steadfast as government would never relent in efforts to see their daughters back home safely.

    Saraki said: “As a parent, I feel the pains of these unfortunate young girls from Chibok and the latest one – Leah Sharibu – from Dapchi, their parents and the people and Borno and Yobe states  governments over these harrowing experiences.

    “However, all hope is not lost. We are all involved in this . Their return will give us joy while their continued stay in captivity will inflict us with perpetual torment of failure.

    “This is no time for blame game or passing the buck. We must all gear up and work together to see these girls rescued within the shortest possible time. I believe that the last four years has given us ample time to reflect on the calamity, review our modus operandi – politically and militarily – and resolve to ensure that all Nigerians are adequately protected.

    “Let’s fine-tune the strategies that have won us successes and discard those that have failed us. The goal and focus must be clear – to rescue our girls and all those in forced captivity in any part of the country, and ultimately, to restore our pride as a sovereign entity.

    “This is the time for all stakeholders to retool and re-strategise to ensure that all these girls are not only rescued but do all in our power to put a closure to all cases of kidnapping and insurgency in this land,” he said.

    The Senate President called on the citizens, who can help to come to the aid of government and the security agencies on how to rescue the girls.

    He urged security agencies to keep people abreast of developments about the issue to avoid the speculations and talks like the one insinuating that many of the girls may have died.

     

     

     

     

     

  • Leah Sharibu’s continued detention

    Sir: Since last week and especially during the Easter holidays, my thoughts have been with the only Dapchi schoolgirl– Leah Sharibu who was left behind in detention among her released school mates.

    While giving more insights into the failed escaped bid, one of the released Dapchi schoolgirls revealed that Leah sneaked out along with two of her classmates – Maryam and Amira. The three girls were said to have wandered in the bush for three days, during which they met a nomadic Fulani family from whom they sought help on how to return to Dapchi. Unknown to them (Leah, Maryam and Amira), the girls were not aware that they had made a big mistake by seeking help from the Fulani. Instead of assisting the girls, the Fulani man reportedly took them back to their kidnappers. Quoting Hajara Adamu, one of Leah’s released classmates: “The Fulani man said to them: “so you are the missing girls that we’ve heard about on radio”. The Fulani man was said to have given them a jerry can filled with cow’s milk and returned them to the terrorists.

    The story narrated above might have proved some suspected and undeniable links between the Boko Haram insurgents and the Fulani herdsmen. The two groups seem to have certain common grounds or certain things in common – to steal, to kill and to destroy. The Boko Haram operates by stealing/abducting or kidnapping school children and blackmailed the government to pay money as a ransom for the release of their victims. Sometimes, the terrorists forced the government to release some of their commanders as part of their terms of negotiation. They also burnt down villages and killed their victims in an attempt to steal their victims’ foodstuffs for their survival.

    In related manners, the Fulani herdsmen are also fond of destroying the farmlands of their victims, burnt down the villages, raped, maimed and killed in several attempts to take over by brutal force the farmlands of their victims for the grazing needs of their cattle.

    While the federal government has succeeded in containing  and limiting the spread of Boko Haram operations beyond the North – Eastern part of the country, the same cannot be said of how the same government is treating certain acts of criminality that are being perpetrated by some suspected Fulani herdsmen. This year alone, not less than five mass graves have been dug where victims of these Fulani herdsmen were buried for refusing to yield their territories/farmlands to forceful acquisition without any form of compensation.

    The situation became so worrisome that retired generals who were former Heads of State/Presidents and former Defence Minister/Chief of Army Staff respectively could no longer avoid to keep their talks/advice with the Presidency private and were compelled to bare their minds for prosterity’s sake.

    The clarion call now is for each of us (those in government and the electorate/the Nigerian populace) to accept God’s verdict, plead for mercy and retrace our steps from the crimes that the Righteous Judge has found us guilty of so that we can be qualified to serve as the Mediator or group of Mediators that God is looking for to stand in the gap before Him and plead for the land of Nigeria through our prayers and actions.

    In the meantime, no harm shall befall Leah Sharibu. The innocent teenage schoolgirl should be released so that she can return to the warm embrace of her parents and the Dapchi Community without any further delay. We also hope that she has not been molested or abused in any form. Enough is enough of these self – inflicted afflictions and manipulations!

     

    • Gbemiga Olakunle, JP National Prayer Movement, Abuja.

  • Yobe CAN prays for Leah Sharibu

    The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) in Yobe State has held special prayers for the release of Leah Sharibu.

    Leah’s mother, Rebecca, travelled from Dapchi to attend the prayer.

    Many worshippers carried placards calling on the governments and those involved in negotiations for Leah’s release to intensity efforts.

    The chairperson of CAN’s women wing, Mrs. Margaret Ajayi, lamented the pains Leah’s parents are going through, especially after her mates were released and she was held behind.

    She said: “As parents, it’s really heartbroken that your child is in the hands of people you don’t trust. Our prayer is for the girl to be released unconditionally to the parents.”

    One of the officiating ministers, Rev Mathias Bala, said: “Anything above mankind should be tabled for God’s intervention.” He called on President Muhammadu Buhari to do his part in ensuring Leah’s safe return.

    Rebecca Sharibu thanked Nigerians and the world for standing by the family since Leah was abducted.

    She called on the authorities to work towards securing her daughter’s freedom.