From Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja
Tears flowed freely at the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs Prayer Meeting to mark the 9th anniversary of the abduction of 276 girls of Federal Government Girls College, Chibok, Borno State.
At the event, Salomi Pogu, the 15th on the list of the abducted girls, who was rescued in 2018, appreciated the Federal Government, Minister of Women Affairs, Pauline Tallen, and other stakeholders for all their efforts to support the families of the victims and to rescue the remaining 96 girls.
She said amid tears: “We appreciate what you all have done in our lives. I cannot say anything else except to say thank you. Please, let’s do more, let’s not forget about these children.”
Tallen, in her solemn message, said out of the 276 abducted on April 14, 2014, 57 had escaped, while 219 of the girls were taken away.
She said 122 of the girls had so far been rescued, with 108 of them under the current administration, while 97 were still in captivity.
Tallen told the prayer meeting that, after a successful de-radicalisation of some of the released girls, a rehabilitation committee, headed by the Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo, was constituted while her 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. In his address, Permanent Secretary, Alhaji Aliyu Shehu Shinkafi, represented by Director, Economic Services, Mr. Idris Muhammed, assured that the government was committed to bringing the remaining girls held captive by Boko Haram terrorists safely to their families.
He added that rehabilitating the rescued girls and taking care of their needs were of utmost priority to the federal government and the ministry.
Country Director, Action Aid Nigeria, Ene Obi, described the nine years as years of agony for the mothers of the Chibok girls. While commending the government for what they had done so far, she said, “they have not done enough; they need to do more. Our children are in capacity, and we are sleeping as if there is nothing more we could do.
“What we are saying is that the father of the nation should know his children are in captivity, and we are calling on him to return our children. If our girls are not returned under this administration it will be a big indictment.”
President of National Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ), Comrade Ladi Bala, on her part, said: “For a mother to stay without her child, knowing that her child is in captivity with people you cannot vouch for their character, is a sad narrative.”