A series of terrible attacks, such as the kidnapping of schoolgirls in Kebbi and the reported murder of a Brigadier-General in Borno, has made Nigeria even more worried. This has brought attention to the country’s growing insecurity and increased calls for a complete overhaul of its failing security systems.
At least 25 girls were taken from Government Girls Secondary School in Maga, which is in the Danko-Wasagu district of Kebbi State. Armed men killed the Vice Principal, Mr. Hassan Makuku, and injured Ali Shehu, a security guard.
The attackers, who residents say were a huge number of bandits, assaulted the school at 4:00 a.m., firing randomly to scare people, according to The Guardian.
They climbed over the fence around the school and took the students from their hostel.
People who live there stated the gunmen led the girls they had taken into the bushes nearby.
The Kebbi State Police Command said that the kidnapping happened.
CSP Nafiu Abubakar Kotarkoshi, the Police Public Relations Officer, said in a statement that the attackers stormed the school with advanced weaponry and opened fire as they forced their way in.
He claimed, “The police tactical units that were sent to the school shot at them.” “Sadly, the suspected thieves had already climbed over the school fence and taken 25 students from their dormitory to an unknown location.”
Abubakar stated that after the incident, the leadership quickly sent out more police tactical units, together with military forces and local vigilantes, to keep an eye on the terrorists’ movements.
“They are now searching the bandits’ paths and nearby forests in order to find the kidnapped students and maybe even catch the people who did this terrible thing,” he said.
He said that the Commissioner of Police, CP Bello M. Sani, “reiterates the command’s unwavering determination to safeguard the people of Kebbi State.” He also asked the public to stay calm, alert, and supportive of current security activities.
Ahmed Idris, the Governor’s Chief Press Secretary, also confirmed the occurrence and added that the state administration was keeping a careful eye on what was happening.
He told our reporter, “We are still checking the exact number of students who were taken.”
He further said that Governor Nasir Idris has sent his deputy, Umar Tafida, to the school to check on the situation because he is not in the state right now.
Idris told the people that the government was working with security forces to make sure the students got home safely and that things went back to normal in the town.
Parents and people who live in Maga are still in pain as they wait for more news.
ISWAP says they killed a high-ranking army commander following a deadly ambush in Borno.
While officials tried to find the kidnapped schoolgirls, the military was dealing with a different problem in Borno, where rebels claimed to have captured and killed a high-ranking commander.
Militants from the Islamic State West Africa Province said they had killed the officer who was taken during a devastating attack on a military convoy.
Brigadier-General M. Uba of the 25 Task Force Brigade was in charge of the convoy that was coming back from a patrol near Wajiroko village in Borno State late on Friday when it came under heavy gunfire.
The army spokeswoman didn’t respond right away to calls for information, but they did say earlier that allegations that the officer had been kidnapped were “fake news” and told people to ignore unconfirmed claims that were going around online.
But ISWAP took credit for the ambush in a statement on its Amaq propaganda channel. They stated they had killed the officer, who was a brigade commander, after questioning him.
The incident happened not long after Brig.-Gen. Uba had helped with a successful air-ground operation against rebels in the area.
He had already talked to his bosses and told them he was safe and regrouping with his squad. Military sources think that the way he talked may have accidentally revealed where he was.
The extremists took him alive, questioned him for a little time, and then killed him.
Several military sources reported that Major General Abubakar, the Theatre Commander of Operation Hadin Kai, and the Sector 2 Commander got to Damboa soon after the ambush to help with the rescue and lift the spirits of the troops.
A high-ranking military source added, “The Brigadier General who was kidnapped was able to send his live location to his coworkers.”
“They followed the trail and found the spot, but he was nowhere to be found.” We don’t know if the terrorists took his phone or if it died.
Another source stated the cop seemed to have access to his phone while under duress.
“Even yesterday morning, he called his dry cleaner on video and told him not to talk,” the person added.
Troops sent to the place he said came back empty-handed. Reports say that one soldier who was shot and taken with him was freed, but the senior commander and two others were still missing at the time.
Brigadier-General Mustapha has been put in charge of the 26 Task Force Brigade in Damboa in reaction to the crisis. Troops who were already working on the rescue effort were pulled out early on Sunday.
Tinubu orders an immediate rescue and promises that those responsible will be punished.
President Bola Tinubu has told security forces to quickly free the kidnapped students in the meantime.
Mohammed Idris, the Minister of Information and National Orientation, stated in a statement that the President strongly denounced the incident and promised to protect all Nigerians, especially students.
He said, “President Bola Tinubu has said again that it is the State’s serious duty to protect all Nigerians, especially schoolchildren.” The government condemns the horrible attack on innocent youngsters and the murder of school staff who were doing their duty.
He stated that the President gave “clear orders” to security and intelligence services to find the kidnapped students and bring them back safely, and that the people who did it must be brought to justice.
He went on to say, “The federal government will not give up until this goal is reached.”
Idris also told the public that keeping the country safe is still a high priority for the Tinubu administration. They are “recalibrating the nation’s military, policing, and intelligence capabilities” to stop these kinds of attacks and respond quickly when they do happen.
He noted that Nigeria is also working with ECOWAS, the African Union, and the Multinational Joint Task Force to improve border security and break up terrorist and criminal networks.
“We ask the public to stay calm and confident while security forces work around the clock to fix this,” he said.
Atiku wants the country’s security system to be completely changed right away.
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar also spoke out against the assassination of the vice-principal and the kidnapping of students at Government Girls Comprehensive Senior Secondary School in Maga, Kebbi State. He called the event another sign of Nigeria’s growing insecurity.
He replied, “This is not the way Nigeria can go on. I urge the federal government to quickly assess and improve its security system, send enough troops to towns that are at risk, and step up actions that are based on intelligence. “Nothing less than protection, dignity, and peace for our citizens.”
Atiku also criticized the execution of Umar Moriki, a leader of the All Progressives Congress, and the mass kidnappings in Tsafe Local Council of Zamfara State, where armed men took whole families, including women and children.
He said that similar violent attacks and displacements were happening in Plateau, Benue, and other states. He also said that people in Shanono Local Council in Kano State were leaving their homes because they were afraid.
Atiku told the federal government to quickly change the country’s security system, send more troops to weak areas, and step up operations based on information.
Ohanaeze leader blames the government and claims that insecurity is now a systemic failure.
Goddy Uwazurike, a lawyer and leader of the Ohanaeze Ndigbo, the highest Igbo social and cultural group, also spoke out against the most recent attack on the girls’ school in Kebbi State, calling it a serious breach of the government’s constitutional duty to protect its residents.
Uwazurike noted that the 1999 Constitution makes it plain that the government at all levels—federal, state, and local—is responsible for the safety and well-being of the people.
He went on to say that the constitution “guarantees our rights to freedom, education, movement, dignity of the human person, quality education, and freedom from religious control.”
He called the kidnapping “an unmitigated assault on the sovereignty of Nigeria, eleven and a half years after the Chibok kidnapping.”
He pointed out what he called a “disturbing pattern”: “The common factor in both abductions is that the man who was the Governor of Borno State when Chibok happened is now the Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.” Kebbi and Borno are both states in the same country.
Uwazurike added that the event shows that security agencies are not doing their jobs.
He claimed, “As always, the many military checkpoints didn’t catch the terrorists as they rode their motorcycles in groups of about 100 for long distances, and military intelligence didn’t see any danger.”
He said that the APC-led governments that came after each other were too mild on crime. He remembered that the government of previous President Muhammadu Buhari wanted to use the word “bandits” instead of “terrorists.” He also said that the current government of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was “treating the outlaws with kid gloves.”
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