By Martha Agas, News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)
On the night of April 14, 2014, 276 schoolgirls, in what can best be described a scene from a crime movie, were abducted by Boko Haram insurgents from their hostel in Chibok, a major town in Borno.
While some of the students escaped on transit, several others were taken into captivity. One decade after, many of them are still held hostage. Some have been rescued while some escaped from their forced home in the Sambisa forest.
Several other gales of students kidnapping occurred until what appeared to be a break in the criminality was halted by a seeming resurgence in recent times.
In hushed tones, some primary school teachers discuss the March 7 abduction of 137 school children from the comfort of their school premises in Kuriga, Chikun Local Government Area, 89 Kilometres from Kaduna the state capital.
Bandits abducted the children of LEA primary school and Government Secondary School, which share premises. To regain their freedom, the bandits demanded a ransom of N1 billion.
After spending 16 days in captivity, the abductees were released. The state government claimed that no ransom was paid, but many members of the public think otherwise.
A teacher in Chikun LGA, Mrs Monica Sambo, recently told newsmen that teachers now live in fear because of the risk of being kidnapped in view of the rural nature of their work place.
“Few years ago, teachers in rural areas usually did not worry about insecurity. Now, you pray to go to work and return safely,” she said.
The security challenge is not limited to the primary schools. Other institutions are not left out as kidnappers also prowl around universities.
In Sept. 2023, no fewer than 24 students of the Federal University, Gusau, were abducted after bandits invaded three female off campus hostels at Sabon-Gida community in Bungudu Local Area of Zamfara.
On March 28, three students of the University of Calabar were abducted from one of the hostels on the campus.
In Delta State, nine students were forcefully taken away on April 1 on the Ugheli end of East-West Road and a ransom of N10 million was demanded. They were released 24 hours later.
And the most recent incidence was in Kogi, where several students, on the night of May 9, were abducted from Confluence University of Science and Technology (CUSTEC) in Osara. However, 20 of them have been reported rescued so far.
While the list appears endless, the world would not forget mass abductions in Nigerian schools such as the case of the more than 300 students abducted from the Government Girls Science Secondary School in Jangebe, Zamfara state in February 2021
In 2020, the 300 boys abducted from Government Science School in Kankara, Katsina. In 2018, 110 students from Government Science and Technical College Dapchi, Yobe .
Observers say the chibok incidence set the tone of abduction as a brisk business for bandits, especially with the weak security system which they have leveraged on to establish as their nest and safe haven in forests.
The amount of money involved in ransom is staggering. More shocking is the number of abducted persons.
According to a report, between July 2022 and June 2023, 3,620 people were abducted in 582 incidents and at least N5 billion exchange hands in ransom demand and payment.
According to a study conducted by NOI polls in February, the north central has the highest prevalence rate of kidnapping in Nigeria, followed by the North West, and South West, of which ransom was paid for 43 per cent of the victims.
Reports indicate that the forests of Zamfara are the hotbed for the perpetrators who abduct their victims and convey them to the area. The governor of the state, Dauda Lawal, had said that the state has become a centre of banditry, which is affecting the entire northern region.
While this new venture mouthwatering for bandits, it has dire consequences for the education sector. More profound is its implications for the girl child education and breaking the circle of poverty.
In the northern part of this country the situation is more troubling, given the prevalent social and cultural realities which inhibit girl child education and have kept many children out of school.
UNESCO estimates that in Nigeria 20.2 million young people are out of school. Most of them are in the north.
The aggravation of this already unpleasant situation will frustrate the Nigeria’s ambition of achieving SDG 4 which specifies inclusive and equitable education by 2030.
Security experts say targeting these institutions by bandits is strategic because of the publicity it generates and the involvement of government in negotiations, a guarantee for bogus cash.
The situation has made educationists careful in organising field trips for students and in taking them to conferences which are all critical parts of the learning process.
Prof. Salome Waziri, said the department had to get non-branded bus to convey students to attend the 2024 annual Nigerian Mining and Geologists Sciences conference which was held in Jos.
Waziri is an associate professor and Head of Department of Geology at the Federal University of Technology, Minna.
She said a bus with the school logo would have increased the vulnerability of the students to kidnapping.
“I went with 23 undergraduates and seven graduates and seven lecturers. We didn’t go with any of the school vehicle, “ she said.
The scourge has led to the shutdown of some schools especially in areas where bandits attack regularly. This has stalled academic progress of the affected students.
Stakeholders say that if the menace is not addressed urgently, education particularly in rural areas and in the northern part of the country would face more difficult days while dreams to break cycle of poverty would be a mirage.
As part of efforts to address the situation, security experts say Nigeria`s porous borders must be strengthened to check the influx of foreign terrorist fighters.
Account of some rescued abductees in the northern region described their abductors as foreigners from neighbouring countries.
The National Security Adviser, Malam Nuhu Ribadu, affirmed during a recent high- level African Counter-Terrorism meeting in Abuja that foreign terrorist fighters contribute to the factors driving terrorism in Africa.
The attacks on schools have been described by stakeholders as a violation of children’s right to education and have urged authorities to find lasting solutions to the lingering challenge threatening the access to education.
According to Amnesty international, school should be places of safety, adding that no child should choose between education and life.
They urged the Nigerian government to ensure the country`s educational sector is not further threatened by armed groups particularly in north.
Experts say to address the menace the Federal Government should tackle the underlying factors that lead to banditry such as poverty and unemployment.
They recommended the increase of security forces in schools in remote areas and the installation of good security systems such as the CCTV cameras and other alarm systems in schools.
They emphasise the need to foster community-based intelligence networks and encourage local communities to work with security agencies in gathering and sharing information on potential threats.
As part of government efforts to address the menace, the federal government established the safe school initiative which was inaugurated in 2014.
The National Safe School Response Coordination Centre has its headquarters at the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corp.
The Nigerian Defence Headquarters in March inaugurated its Standard Operating Procedure for the Safe School initiative.
The Chief of Defence staff, General Christopher Musa at the event pledged the commitment of the armed forces in providing assistance for the security of school children and other learning institutions against attack.
Military operations such as Sharan Daji/Hadarin Daji, Harbin Kunama, Operation Sahel Sanity and Operation accord were also launched to comprehensively tackle banditry and other crimes in the northern region.
While these measures have recorded some level of success, stakeholders say that more political will is required to achieve further progress in addressing the menace and ensure that all the strategies work effectively.
The move, according to them, will ensure that kidnappers face the wrath of the law to server as warning signal to others.
They also call for deliberate efforts to provide psychosocial support to students experiencing trauma due to abductions and attacks, and for teachers to be trained on dealing with trauma, among other measures. (NANFeatures)
