Governor of Borno State, Babagana Umara Zulum
The Borno government has assured parents of the abducted Chibok school girls of its continued efforts to rescue the rest of the abducted girls ten years after the ugly incident.
Usman Tar, the state commissioner for information and internal security, gave the assurance on Saturday at a press conference to mark the ten years of the Chibok girl’s abduction.
Mr Tar said that ten years ago, the Boko Haram insurgents criminally abducted 276 innocent girls in their hotels at Government Girls Secondary School, Chibok.
“This painful date is ingrained in our collective memory and we shall not rest on our oars until the last of our innocent girls are back home with their families.
“On this auspicious occasion of the 10th anniversary of the abduction of Chibok Girls, the Borno government identifies and sympathises with all those who are affected by abduction.
“The government wishes to inform the public that we shall continue to struggle to salvage our abducted girls on behalf of the parents and relatives of the Chibok girls who are still in captivity,” he said.
Mr Tar explained that the government was committed to rescuing and reuniting the remaining Chibok girls and reuniting them with their families.
“We understand the pain and anguish that the families of those still in captivity are going through; this is our sorrow!
“We also wish to use this occasion to take stock of the rescued girls and provide an update on how the girls are coming to terms with adjusting to normal life after captivity and the efforts of the Borno government to sustain the momentum on the rescue of the remaining girls,” he added
The commissioner said that so far, out of the 276 abducted Chibok girls, 187 have been rescued and reunited with their families.
According to him, most of the rescued girls have, over the years, been enrolled in different schools or graduated under the supervision of the federal ministry of women affairs.
He added that a number of the girls have been enrolled on local and foreign scholarships or empowerment programmes.
Mr Tar noted that many have since been reunited with their immediate families and are continuing to receive psychosocial support to reconcile them with normal life.
He explained furthermore that 16 recently rescued girls were being rehabilitated by the Borno government and attending the 2nd Chance School, where they were learning skills in various vocations that would provide them with sustainable livelihoods, while their kids were also placed in nursery schools.
Mr Tar also said four of the rescued girls have voluntarily decided to return to their parents.
(NAN)
