By Musdapha Ilo, Maiduguri

President Muhammadu Buhari has assured the parents of the Chibok girls kidnapped in April last year by Boko Haram insurgents that their daughter would soon be rescued.

The president’s assurances were passed to the Chibok girls’ parents Saturday by the governor of Borno State, Kashim Shettima, who presented N100,000 cash assistance and clothing materials to each of them at the Government House, Maiduguri.

Shettima said that the gesture was at the behest of President Buhari who assured that the girls would soon be rescued on account of the renewed military onslaught against the insurgents.

“I met with the president last week in Abuja and he directed that I should meet you and console you over the missing girls. He urged me to extend his heartfelt greetings to you on the issue.”

“Buhari assured that the missing girls will soon be reunited with their families as efforts are being intensified to rescue them alive,” the governor told the parents.

Shettima observed that the cash presented to the parents was not a ransom for their daughters but a gesture aimed at ameliorating the hardship that the girls’ abduction had inflicted on them, while also lamenting that the crisis had affected the economic lives of the affected families.

“The money is not a ransom or compensation for the missing girls. It is to provide a kind of relief to the parents who have been devastated by the loss of their children,” Shettima stated.

“We leaders are responsible for taking care of our people and are accountable before the Almighty God. As such the government will continue to render assistance to the parents of the abducted girls, as most of the parent cannot go to their farms nor carry on with their petty trading, because of the psychological trauma and agony they are going through,” he added.

The governor said that the Boko Haram insurgency should not be given any religious or tribal connotation, noting that the insurgents have killed both Muslims and Christians.

He appealed to all Nigerians irrespective of tribes and religion to join hands in fighting the insurgents.

Governor Shettima also appealed to civil society organisations not to politicise or turn the abduction of the Chibok girls into a money making venture.

He announced that government would soon unfold a plan for rehabilitating the abducted schoolgirls once they are rescued by the military. Responding, Lawan Shettima, the leader of the parents, thanked the President for his concern about their plight and assured him of their cooperation.

He expressed appreciation at the assistance that the federal and Borno state governments had given the Chibok so far.