Bandits: Buhari regime seeks collaboration to stop mass abduction of schoolchildren
By Ridwan Adekunle
President Muhammadu Buhari’s regime has called for collaborative efforts to prevent bandits and terrorists from continuing to carry out mass abductions of schoolchildren and teachers in Nigeria.
Mr Buhari’s regime has witnessed several mass kidnappings of schoolchildren, including teachers sometimes, by bandits and terrorists despite numerous claims of the president that he has tamed the criminal elements.
His education minister, Adamu Adamu, called for collaborative efforts in Abuja on Thursday at the 66th National Council on Education (NCE) meeting.
“The safety and security of all our children must remain paramount. Therefore all hands must be on deck to strengthen the security system of our educational institutions. Security is a collaborative effort and should not be left in the hands of the law enforcement agents alone,” stated the minister. “As such, all stakeholders in the education sector should interface and be involved through the NCE in order to address the menace of insecurity in our country, which remains one of our biggest challenges.”
Mr Adamu added, “The goals of Nigerian education are centred around building a free and democratic society, a just and egalitarian society, a united, strong and self-reliant nation and a great and dynamic economy.”
According to the minister, the Buhari regime carried out effective sensitisation on the implementation of the Safe School Declaration (SSD) Initiative and secured $20 million for accelerated emergency funding for the North-East zone from Global Partnership for Education.
He added that it had also conducted vulnerability surveys on schools to devise robust security strategies, constructed perimeter walls around schools, and installed CCTV and alarm systems.
Mr Adamu admitted that while the regime and some states, including the FCT, had done their best to arrest the situation, several states lagged behind.
He, therefore, called on all states to rise to their responsibilities and provide a safe and secure learning environment for both students and teachers.
