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Tag: School girls’

  • Yobe senators clash over missing school girls

    Yobe senators clash over missing school girls

    Two senators representing  Yobe State,  Ahmed Lawan (Yobe North) and Mohammed Hassan (Yobe South), yesterday clashed over the missing secondary school girls from the state.

    The row started when Lawan, who is also the Senate Leader, praised President Muhammadu Buhari and Governor Ibrahim Geidam for ensuring that parents were comforted and sending Ministry of Education officials to take a head count in the attacked school.

    Hardly had Lawan concluded his contribution of the missing school girls than Hassan sharply disagreed and insisted that Geidam did not deserve any praise.

    Hassan noted that instead of being praised, Geidam should be tackled for allegedly abdicating his duty as the state’s chief security officer.

    Hassan’s attack did not go down well with Lawan. He said the Yobe South lawmaker should not link him (Lawan) with his comments.

    Senator Bukar Abba Ibrahim, who is also from the state had in a motion told the Senate that on Monday, some suspected Boko Haram insurgents attacked Government Girls Technical College in the state.

    He noted that of 936 female students, who ran into the bush, 46 were still missing while 810 returned.

    Ibrahim said: “I understand that the governor of Yobe State has already gotten the military to deploy military and police personnel.

    “So far, there has been no case of killing. Nobody is sure if it was a case of abduction or some of the girls who ran home have not yet come back.

    “These are yet to be confirmed. The Federal Government has already sent a high powered delegation; three ministers to go and stay in Damaturu and report to Mr. President on a continuous basis until the matter is resolved.

    “So it means now that I wish that we resolve to condemn the attack on the school and the resurgence of insurgency.

    “To urge the Federal Government to urgently recover, through the military, of course, the girls so as not to repeat the case of the Chibok girls in Borno State earlier.”

    Lawan said: “What happened was unfortunate and after the Chibok incident, it was the wish of every Nigerian that it doesn’t happen again in the country. I want to, at this point, commend Mr. President, Muhammadu Buhari, for immediately taking action by directing the Armed Forces to move into Yobe to ensure that Boko Haram did not run away with any single girl.

    “I want to also commend the Governor of Yobe State, Ibrahim Geidam, for ensuring that parents were comforted, for sending officials of the Ministry of Education to go round the families to ensure that they took head counts of the girls from that school.

    “What happened is a lesson for us. That Boko Haram sees girls or women as value targets. What they did in Chibok earned them some funds, because negotiations were held somehow and they got a lot of money. Now, the lesson is, we need to be extra careful and take extraordinary measures in protecting our schools; especially girls’ schools in those states especially Borno, Yobe and Adamawa.

    “Yobe State spent over N15 billion supporting security agencies posted to the state. This is an indication that the state government is working in collaboration and cooperation with the Federal Government. I want to urge our state to continue to do that but the Federal Government should also do the needful.

    “Our state is not those kinds of states that you get a lot of money and therefore, such funds should be refunded to them so that we will continue to provide the required security.”

    Hassan disagreed. He said: “In 2013, a secondary school in Potiskum was attacked, where over 70 children were killed. A year after, another secondary school in Mamudu was attacked where school children were slaughtered. There was another attack in Yadin Buni where students were attacked, the state university too was attacked and now we have this one.

    “This is quite disheartening to hear, with due respect to Senator Lawan, to commend the state government for serially failing to protect our students. This is the primary responsibility of the government; to protect the lives and properties of its citizen.

    “The state government of Yobe has serially failed in this regard. It has abdicated its primary responsibility in doing that. Again, Mr. President….”

    Lawan promptly raised Order 53 (7) to remind Hassan that “No senator, shall input improper motive to any other senator”.

    Deputy Senate President Ike Ekeremadu agreed with Lawan and said: “We send our deep concern to the governor and people of Yobe State. We are also aware that the military and the police are overstretched in all ramifications at this period of national insecurity. That is what makes the case a stronger case for another level of policing.

    “If you are now asking the military and the police to provide security at all the schools, they cannot have the number to do so. There must be another level of policing to complement the Federal Government security infrastructure in order to be able secure all parts of Nigeria.”

  • “How we kidnapped Lagos school girls”

    “How we kidnapped Lagos school girls”

    Prime suspect in the abduction of three school girls in Lagos, Emmanuel Arigidi has revealed that twelve people were involved in the operation.
    Speaking to journalists on Sunday after they were arrested and the girls recused, Arigidi said the operation was planned at Majidun area of Ikorodu.
    “We went to Maya bridge to enter Canoe and went to the school around 8pm. After we gained entrance into the school, we took away three girls and we took them to our hideout,” he stated.
    ” But along the line, we had disagreement between ourselves and I was actually the one that started it. I told other members of the gang that what we have done is not good and that I don’t like it.
    “I know that security in Lagos State is now tight and I was telling others that there was no way we would get away with this kind of job considering the level of security in the state. When I told them that we should end the assignment, other members of the gang threatened to kill me and then I took Canoe to run away.
    “Three days after I ran away, operatives of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) then arrested me somewhere in Majidun and that was how I told them how we planned the attack. One thing I will like to say is that if not for the fact that I was arrested, they would not have seen the girls because I was the one that revealed everything to the police,” he narrated.

  • Kidnapped Lagos school girls freed

    Kidnapped Lagos school girls freed

    The three girls kidnapped from Babington Macurlay Junior Seminary (BMJS) Ikorodu, have regained freedom.
    Oluwatimehin Olusa, Tofunmi Popoolaniyan and Deborah Akinayo were abducted from their classroom on Monday night by suspected pipeline vandals.
    It was gathered that the girls were rescued at about 9:45am on Sunday by a team led by the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Fatai Owoseni.
    Their rescue came two days after the Inspector General of Police, Solomon Arase deployed the Special Intelligence Response Team (SIRT) to compliment the efforts of the Lagos State Command.
    The Nation also gathered that three of the suspects have been arrested and currently at the command’s headquarters in Ikeja.
    Among the suspects was one Emmanuel Arikiti, identified as a kingpin and two others who allegedly registered the Sim Card that was used to contact the girls’ parents for ransom.
    A police source who disclosed that security agents had earlier infiltrated the gang and arrested their parents in a bid to force the hand of the kidnappers, added that the criminals gave up because of too much pressure on them.
    “After Arikiti was arrested, the father of two of the criminals, volunteered to go into the Adamo creeks to speak with the others.
    “He went with a canoe after Arikiti gave the police exact location of the girls. When he got to the creeks, he appealed to their baser nature, while informing them that the police have arrested one of their gang members.
    “He also told them that if they dont release the girls, that the police had stationed their helicopters for aerial bombardment. Seeing no other way out, the suspects quickly took the girls to Igbo-Okuta Bridge, Imota, dropped them their and called in anonymously,” said the source.
    Confirming their release, Owoseni:
    “Yes the girls have been rescued. I am with them and about to hand them over to thier principal and parents. In continuation of our search for the girls, I received information that they were sighted at Imota area of Ikorodu. I went there to pick them up in my car and they are safe in police custody.
    “There were rescued about 9.44am today (Sunday). I can confirm that some of the suspects were arrested. We are not aware if ransom was paid.”
    Owoseni who slept in the area said he was driving around Ikorodu in his car when he got a telephone call that the girls were sighted at Imota.
    “They were rescued by the Imota police division. I carried the girls in my car and took them to the school to reunite them with their parents and loved ones. The girls are fine but we will not be exposing them to the media as a result of their age (14 years).
    “They have gone to shower and after that, their parents will be brought to brief you people,” he said.

  • School girls’ abduction saddens me, says ex-minister

    The National Women leader of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Mrs. Kema Chikwe,  yesterday denied doubting the abduction of the 234 Chibok school girls, allegedly by the Boko Haram insurgents in Borno State on April 15.

     An online publication creditted her with a statement doubting the abduction.

    In a statement  yesterday, Mrs Chikwe said: “As a mother, I have remained heartbroken and deeply pained by the unfortunate incident. My heart and thoughts have continued to go out to these girls and their families, hence my decision to mobilise other women to pray for them.

    “However, it has come to my attention that part of my speech at the prayer session, especially the questions I raised concerning the circumstances surrounding the abduction of these innocent girls was largely misunderstood.“

    “Indeed, with every sense of responsibility, I wish to reiterate that this is not the time to sensationalise issues, particularly those relating to these innocent girls whose fate we are all deeply worried about.

    “In this regard, we all must ensure that we are not distracted in anyway whatsoever but collectively focus our energies towards actions that will accelerate the rescue and safe return of these girls to their families.”