As they wait for word of their loved ones, more than 200 parents of children and instructors kidnapped from St. Mary’s Catholic School in Papiri, Agwara Local Government Area, Niger State, have expressed anguish and desperation.
On November 21, armed gunmen stormed the school, kidnapping and capturing around 315 persons, including 12 staff members and 303 kids.
There were still 253 persons in captivity after roughly 50 students managed to flee and reconnect with their parents on November 23, a few days later.
As instructed by the Niger State Government, the parents assembled at the school to register their names. They begged the state government and other pertinent parties to assist in saving their children and instructors from the grasp of their captors.
Many of the parents, weeping and holding signs with varied inscriptions, bemoaned the children’s ongoing incarceration and said that the state administration had not yet paid them a visit or sent a representative to offer their condolences.
“Bring Back Our Girls,” “Our Girls and Teachers are still in captivity,” “We need security in Agwarra,” and “Is education a crime?” are a few of the inscriptions.
Two parents, a male and a female, are said to have died from shock and trauma as a result of the incident, according to a statement released by Rev. Bulus Dauwa Yohanna, the Catholic Bishop of the Kontagora Diocese and the school’s owner.
Sister Blessing Amodu, the school’s weeping headmistress, said, “I am devastated, in fact, I am very disturbed that the children up till now are not back yet.”
“All I am asking for right now is that the government, everyone involved, and everyone affected by this help us find ways to rescue these kids and the staff back to us,” she said.
Dimas Joseph Mauhuta, a parent whose son, Julius Dimas (JSS 2), is one of the kidnapped children, accused the government of claiming the children weren’t abducted.
“We’re curious as to why the state administration would say that. In actuality, my child and other people were kidnapped. The government ought to take action and quit assigning blame. Instead of stating things that are untrue, they ought to help us,” he remarked.
Speaking as well, Emmanuel Ejeh, whose son Mathias was kidnapped, noted that the school had never before seen an incident of this nature and that his two other children had graduated.
“We are pleading with the government to assist us. Bring our kids back; they’re innocent and don’t deserve this,” he shouted.
Prior to this, Rev. Fr. Stephen Okafor, the Diocesan Director of Communication, clarified that the government had mandated the registration procedure.
“We do hope those negative speculations will end with this registration and the number of parents who have turned up,” he stated.
Rev. Bulus Dauwa Yohanna, the Catholic Bishop of the Kontagora Diocese, told the parents that he hoped the kidnappees would soon be set free.
Eight days have passed since their kidnapping, and we still haven’t heard anything. We continue to pray and have high hopes for their return,” he stated.
The bishop added that the school serves more than fifty communities both inside and outside of Agwarra LGA and that it was difficult to gather the parents together for registration.
He clarified that the majority of the parents rode their motorcycles for three to four hours in order to get to the school.
Speaking further, Rev. Sis. Felicia Gyam, the school’s principal, refuted assertions that there had been any prior warning of the attack.
“Those who claim that there was a warning before to the attack ought to provide proof. She added, “There was neither a verbal notification nor a circular.”
Along with similar incidents in Kebbi, Kwara, and other states, the recent kidnapping of over 300 students and teachers from St. Mary’s Catholic School in Niger State has caused widespread concern and outrage both inside and outside of Nigeria, underscoring the urgent need for the federal government to address the growing wave of attacks.
Pope Leo XIV is one among those who has called for the hostages to be released immediately.
President Bola Tinubu declared a national security emergency, ordered the recruitment of more police officers to bolster internal security, authorized the deployment of forest guards to protect remote areas from armed groups, and ordered the deployment of security forces to search for the abductees in response to the unrest.
The incident is a part of a larger wave of violence in Nigeria that is being spearheaded by a number of armed groups, including the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) and the Boko Haram sect.
Because of this, analysts have continued to criticize the federal government for how it has handled the security situation, arguing that more needs to be done to address the underlying reasons of the conflict endangering Nigeria’s peace, unity, and advancement.
