Africa -China Review Africa -China Cooperation and Transformation
By Grace Kuria
The Nigerian schoolgirls who were kidnapped from Government Secondary School in Jangebe, Zamfara State have been freed.
Zamfara State Governor, Bello Matawalle, said the girls were released with the help of repentant bandits, adding that “They are 279 schoolgirls, none is missing!”
Taking to his twitter account, the governor on Tuesday tweeted, “Alhamdulillah! It gladdens my heart to announce the release of the abducted students of GGSS Jangebe from captivity. This follows the scaling of several hurdles laid against our efforts. I enjoin all well-meaning Nigerians to rejoice with us as our daughters are now safe.”
President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday tweeted saying “I join the affected families and the people of Zamfara State in welcoming and celebrating the release of the abducted students of GGSS Jangebe. This news bring overwhelming joy. I am pleased that their ordeal has come to a happy end without any incident.”
He further stressed the government’s commitment to ending the series of kidnappings sating, “We are working hard to bring an end to these grim and heartbreaking incidents of kidnapping. The Military and the Police will continue to go after kidnappers. They need the support of local communities in terms of human intelligence that can help nip criminal plans in the bud.”
The schoolgirls had been abducted by armed bandits, who stormed the government run secondary school in Jangebe, Zamfara State.
This was the second such kidnapping in a little over a week in Nigeria’s north, which has seen a surge in activity by armed groups leading to a widespread and worsening breakdown of security.
Just a week ago, unidentified gunmen killed a student in an overnight attack on a boarding school in the north-central Nigerian state of Niger and kidnapped 42 people, including 27 students.
