President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has welcomed the release of the 24 schoolgirls abducted by terrorists in Maga, Kebbi State, last Monday, urging security agencies to intensify efforts to rescue all other victims still in captivity.
The girls were seized at dawn on November 17 shortly after a military detachment left the school premises, an attack that triggered copycat kidnappings in Eruku, Kwara State, and Papiri in Niger State. All 38 kidnap victims in Eruku regained freedom on Sunday, while the Niger State chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria confirmed that 50 of the missing students of the Catholic School in Papiri had returned home.
In a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, President Tinubu commended the security forces for the coordinated operations that led to the successful rescue missions.
He, however, stressed that more decisive actions are needed to prevent further attacks and secure those still missing.
“I am relieved that all the 24 girls have been accounted for. Now, we must, as a matter of urgency, put more boots on the ground in vulnerable areas to avert further incidents of kidnapping. My government will offer all the assistance needed to achieve this,”
President Tinubu was quoted as saying by Bayo Onanuga.
The President reiterated his administration’s commitment to securing the nation, assuring Nigerians that ongoing operations would continue until every abducted citizen is safely reunited with their families.
