Former Vice President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, has
welcomed the release of some of the school girls freed by Boko Haram on Wednesday morning four weeks after they were kidnapped from their school in Dapchi, Yobe
State.
In a statement issued by his media office in Abuja on Wednesday,
Atiku said he was gladdened by the return of the girls, and expressed joy that
some families who had been heartbroken would now have the tears wiped away from
their faces, as well as other Nigerians who were distressed by their abduction.
"This is a moment of joy for all of us as a country.
We may not all be in Dapchi at the moment, but we are all celebrating with the
families, the community and the entire Yobe State," he stated.
Atiku, however, noted that the grief of the parents
whose daughters weren't returned would probably take on a new and more
tormenting dimension, as they continue to wait and pray for their safe return.
According to him, "May God continue to
strengthen and give them hope.”
The former vice president believes “that while the
events are fresh in our heads, a call for a more permanent solution to the
problem of kidnapping of girls from schools should be found.”
He proposed several ideas including the immediate
reassignment of 150,000 Nigerian police personnel to secure schools in volatile
areas of the Northeast. “In addition, the government should look at redesigning
schools to make them more secure from attack, including the addition of safe
rooms.
"We cannot continue to allow our daughters to
be used as instruments of negotiation, subject to capture and release at the
whim of any group," he said.
Atiku said: "For the sake of our youths who
embody the best of our tomorrow, we must confront this Frankenstein monster.
Working together as a country, we can and must bring an end to this. Not a day
must be wasted in finding solutions to these anomalies. We must make it safe so
that our girls and women in every part of the country can study and flourish in
peace."
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