to reconstruct the Government Secondary School, Chibok, where over 200
schoolgirls were abducted on April 14, 2014, insisting on the return
of the girls first.
The group rejected the safe school initiative of the government at a
press conference attended by over 1,000 indigenes of Chibok to react
to the recent surprise visit of a Nigerian government delegation led
by the Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.
At that visit by the Minister, the foundation stone for the
reconstruction of some destroyed structures of the Chibok school was
laid.
"It is disheartening to inform you that since the abduction of these
girls, the Federal Government did not bother to send delegations to
Chibok to sympathise with the parents, instead, the parents were
invited to Abuja and conveyed in cargo military plane with no comfort
whatsoever," the group said.
The Chibok community led by the Caretaker Chairman of Chibok Council
Area, Mr Ba'ana Lawan, accused the Federal Government of several
broken promises of rescuing the over 200 abducted schoolgirls.
The community frowned at the recent visit by President Goodluck
Jonathan to some communities ravaged by the Boko Haram insurgency
without similar visit to Chibok to sympathise with the people for the
abduction.
Traumatised Parents
"We still observed that recently, President Goodluck Jonathan visited
Mubi and Baga, but failed to visit Chibok to sympathise with our
people," the chairman said, emphasising that priority should be given
to the rescue of the schoolgirls rather than the rebuilding of the
destroyed school.
"We are dismay over the Federal Government's move to rebuild
Government Secondary School (GSS), Chibok which was destroyed by the
insurgents during the abduction of the schoolgirls," Mr Lawan stated.
He said the traumatised parents and the entire people of Chibok
community only want their children back home.
"We also observed that the President and Chief of Defence Staff, Air
Vice Marshal Alex Badeh had severally promised that these girls will
soon be released, but is it is now more than 300 days, and nothing of
such happen.
"We thank God and appreciate Governor Kashim Shettima and his wife,
Nana Kashim Shettima who did not only visited Chibok when the incident
took place, but also secured admission for 59 schoolgirls that escaped
from Boko Haram captivity to study in various schools in the country
and for all the other assistance the couples have rendered to the
parents.
"It is most unfortunate that Chibok local government area has
witnessed six different attacks by insurgents with about 300 people
losing their lives and property worth millions of naira destroyed,
hundreds of houses razed down as well as food and cash crops looted,
yet there was no response from the Federal Government," he lamented.
Mr Lawan strongly condemned the Federal Government's decision to
reconstruct the school where the girls were abducted instead of
keeping its numerous promises of returning the girls.
--ChannelsTV
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