PARENTS of the remaining 11 female students abducted by terrorists from the Federal Government College, Birnin Yauri, Kebbi State in 2021, have appealed for donations to raise N100 million ransom demanded by the abductors.
The parents, under the aegis of ‘Committee of Parents of 11 Abducted Students of F.G.C Birnin Yauri, Kebbi State, Nigeria’, made the appeal in an open letter addressed to Nigerians.
In the letter, they said efforts at negotiating with the abductors or getting the government to intervene and secure the release of the students have not yielded results.
Chairman of the committee of parents, Salim Ka’oje, noted in the letter that the abductors were demanding the sum of N100 million naira as ransom for the release of the students.
Ka’oje also said the parents have sold all their valuable assets in a bid to raise the ransom.
“This is what informed the resolution of the parents to seek for assistance in addition to disposing of all their disposable assets to achieve this goal.
“Assistance and donations can be sent to the following accounts: Salim Sani Ka’oje Jaiz Bank with Account Number: 0007886580 and Keziah Kano Union Bank Account No 0032362797,” Ka’oje said.
On June 17, 2021, terrorists attacked the FGC in Birnin Yauri and kidnapped about 80 students and teachers.
Some students were badly injured in the gun battle between the abductors and the police. A policeman was also killed in the incident.
A letter had been addressed to the school presumably by the terrorists, warning of the attack but it was dismissed by the authorities as a prank.
While some students have been released, 11 are still in captivity.
It was reported in February 2022 that some of the girls had been married off and impregnated by their captors.
Mass abduction of students have become more frequent since 2014, when at least 276 girls were kidnapped from the Government Girls Secondary School in Chibok, Borno State.
Between 2020 and 2021, at least 700 students were abducted in northern Nigeria, forcing many schools to shutdown.
The situation has forced many parents to withdraw their children from school, worsening the number of out-of-school children in Nigeria, which is currently over 20 million according to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO).
Ijeoma Opara is a journalist with The ICIR. Reach her via [email protected] or @ije_le on Twitter.