The Minister of Women Affairs, Pauline Tallen has organized a prayer event for the release of the remaining Chibok School Girls still with their captors.
The 14th of April 2023 marks the 9th year that the sad abduction of school girls took place in Chibok, Borno State, Northern Nigeria.
During the prayer session at the Ministry’s headquarters in Abuja, the Minister disclosed that 276 girls of Federal Government Girls College, Chibok, Borno State were initially abducted while writing their examinations in 2014 while Fifty-seven (57) of them had the opportunity to escape, leaving 219 of the girls taken away.
“Through the concerted efforts of the Federal Government, 122 were rescued while 97 are still in captivity of the Boko Haram terrorists.”
The Minister asked everyone to keep hope alive that the remaining girls would be released.
Tallen further revealed that after a successful de-radicalization of some of the released girls, a Rehabilitation Committee headed by the Vice President, Prof. Yemi Oshinbajo was constituted while the Ministry designed rehabilitation and reintegration programmes funded by the Federal Government and international partners.
According to her, “The programme, lasted for nine months after which the girls were enrolled into American University, Yola.”
She added that President Muhammadu Buhari specifically directed that because of the hardship they went through, the American University of Nigeria (AUN) in Yola should create a special programme for them to take care of the lost session since they were at the point of writing their examination when they were abducted.
The Minister said she has made repeated visits to the girls at the University to make sure that they were well taken care of adding that security is everybody’s business; “With the right information from the people in Chibok and other Nigerians to security agents, the security forces will be able to work diligently to secure the remaining girls and the country as well.”
The Ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Aliyu Shinkafi represented by Director, Economic Services, Mr Idris Muhammed assured the gathering that the government is committed to bringing the remaining girls held captive by Boko Haram terrorists, safely to their families.
He equally said rehabilitating the rescued girls and taking care of their needs are of utmost priority to the Federal Government and the Ministry.
Earlier, Salome Pogu, one of the rescued 122 Chibok school girls, in tears, thanked the Minister and Federal Government for their efforts and appealed that the Federal Government should facilitate the release of the remaining girls in captivity.
As an occasion for sober reflection, the event’s highpoint was prayers from both Muslim and Christian organizations which include; the Federation of Muslim Women Association of Nigeria (FOMWAN), Ansar ‘l Islam, Church of Christ in Nigeria (COCIN) and Zumutan Mata Katolika (Catholic Women Association of Nigeria), who took turn to pray to God for the safe release of the remaining Chibok girls.
PIAK
