* Idris: It’s soothing relief for Nigeria
*Abiodun hails Tinubu, urges massive support
Olawale Ajimotokan and Linus Aleke in Abuja
State forces, coordinated by the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), have successfully secured the release of the remaining students and teachers abducted from St. Mary’s Catholic School, Papiri, in Rafi Local Government Area of Niger State, sources familiar with the operation, have said.
The rescue operation confirmed that all remaining victims taken during the November 21 attack had now been freed.
Armed bandits on motorcycles, on November 21, stormed St. Mary’s Catholic School around 2am, abducting no fewer than 315 students, including 12 teachers.
The assailants, reportedly, moved systematically from dormitory to dormitory before taking their victims into nearby forests.
During the initial attack, 50 students managed to escape. Security agencies had previously secured the release of around 100 abductees on December 8, leaving a number of victims still in captivity until the latest operation.
The source, the remaining captives were freed on Friday evening in a forest located between Agwara and Borgu Local Government Areas.
Security personnel from the Office of the National Security Adviser oversaw the evacuation under heavy protection.
The source added that the release followed intensive negotiations between the government and the abductors, though it remained unclear whether ransom was paid.
The abduction from St. Mary’s Catholic School was recorded as the single largest school kidnapping in Niger State to date.
Data showed that since January 2023, at least 816 pupils had been abducted in 22 separate school attacks.
However, reports on the current location of the released students were conflicting.
Some sources indicated they were in Minna receiving medical attention before being reunited with their families, while others suggested they were in Abuja, awaiting handover to Governor Umar Bago of Niger State, who was currently in the city.
Confirming the development, Bishop of Kontagora Diocese and Proprietor of the school, Most Reverend Bulus Dauwa Yohanna,
said Bago called him “a few minutes ago to confirm the release of the children and their teachers”.
He, however, said the figure of children released was not mentioned, adding that they are expected in Minna today and to be received by the governor at Government House.
Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, said the rescue of the remaining 130 children and staff from St. Mary’s Catholic School, Papiri, Niger State, was a fitting end to the year. Idris stated this in a statement last night, stressing that all the abducted pupils of the Catholic School, numbering 230, had been freed, with not a single pupil was left in captivity.
He said the released 130 pupils had also been handed over to the Niger State government, after which they would be reunited with their families.
Idris said, “This courageous effort by our security forces reaffirms our nation’s resolve to protect its people. The federal government empathises with the parents and guardians of the pupils for the agony the abduction has caused them, wishes them a pleasant family reunion, a good healing process, compliments of the season and a Merry Christmas.”
Ogun State Governor, and Chairman of Southern Governors’ Forum, Dapo Abiodun, expressed delight at the release of the 130 students, saying it is a sign that evil forces would not triumph over Nigeria.
Abiodun said the release of the remaining students of the school, which brought the total number of those rescued to 230, fulfilled Tinubu’s pledge to ensure the freedom of the students without any hurt, and facilitate their reunion with their parents.
Commending the president for the security measures rolled out, which he said had restored the confidence of Nigerians in their government, Abiodun said the catalogue of releases of abducted persons, including 24 from Kebbi State and 100 from a Catholic school in Niger State, as well as the Christian worshippers in Eruku, Kwara State, showed that the president had capacity to face Nigeria’s challenges head on.
Abiodun, in a statement issued in Abeokuta, said it was particularly heart-warming that the students and their parents would be able to celebrate the Yuletide in warm embrace after the terrible ordeal, urging the security agencies to ensure that the perpetrators are prosecuted to the fullest extent allowed by law.
He stated, “I am extremely delighted to learn that the remaining 130 students of St. Mary’s Catholic School Papiri community, Niger State, who were hitherto in captivity, have been released.
“The students, their parents, Papiri community and the Government of Niger State have all been through a lot, and I rejoice with them in this moment of triumph over the forces of darkness who seized innocent students from their hostels, and their teachers from the school grounds.
“If this incident shows anything, it is the fact that the Bola Tinubu administration is committed to a safe, secure and prosperous Nigeria, and deserves our collective prayers and moral support.
The governor added, “The president is determined to tackle the upsurge of kidnapping and terrorist attacks, and bring sanity back to our society, which will invariably restore the confidence of Nigerians and the international community in the government, and bring massive development.
“The security agencies deserve plaudits for this feat. I also urge them to ensure that the terrorists behind the attacks on innocent and law-abiding Nigerians are hunted down and prosecuted to the fullest extent allowed by law.”
