Inconsolable mothers of the abducted Chibok girls spoke up in Lagos on Thursday recalling the horror they have been living in since the kidnap incident.
The event, attended by US and Nigerian officials, was held at the Intercontinental Hotel on Victoria Island, according to The Nation.
Three mothers, Esther Yakubu, Mrs Ruth Bitris and Mrs Monica Sitover, in trembling voices spoke about the fateful day.
The audience sank into silence when the devastated Mrs Yakubu started. Upon hearing the news she rushed to school to find out her daughter was not already there.
“Guns boomed between about 11.30pm and about 4am. I was almost dead where I hid, shivering. They broke into the school’s premises with a rocket launcher. I passed through there into the premises. They set everything on fire. I got to the hostel; it was empty. It was at that point that it dawned on me that they had kidnapped my first baby. Then, I asked God repeatedly: “Why me … why me…?”
Unable to control her emotions, the woman could not proceed, but just begged the government to bring back their girls.
Speaking through Pastor Philip Madu, Mrs. Bitris called Boko Haram insurgents the “devil’s agent”, who stormed the school and took their children.
“No one knows what these people (the insurgents) wanted. They just came and seized our joy. We are begging government to see to this situation. We are helpless; we are as good as dead for now.”
All of a sudden the woman fell on the floor and started rolling, she cried asking the authorities to return her girl. She managed to proceed however, so she got up and said:
“For two days, I was roaming the bush to see if I could set my eyes on my child. I am in pains; we are in real trouble. I am pleading with the world to help us find our children and bring peace back into our community and our country …”
US Congressman Louie Gohmert assured the women that their daughter would be found and rescued, he shook their hands urging them not to lose hope.
Founder of a non-governmental organisation, Omoluabi Network, Pastor Ladi Thompson supported the mothers and added on the religious side of the issue:
“Unless the Federal Government and indeed, the world quickly separate religion from the work of the devil that is casting darkness over the country, Nigeria may cease to be in the next 18 months.”
Other officials present at the gathering agreed that the issue should not be politicized, saying that all must “jointly confront” the evil.
Abduction
April 14, Boko Haram conduct night raid on Chibok school, Borno State, and kidnap more than 200 girls. Only 3 weeks later the group claims responsibility for the attack, as its leader Abubakar Shekau releases video saying the girls are his ownership and vowing he will sell them in the market.
Various resources, including international experts, allege the girls were split into groups and relocated to the neighbouring countries.
Meanwhile the Nigerian government falls under attack over the slow response to the whole incident and the failure to handle the situation.
New hopes appear among the shocked parents as the military claim and insists they have identified the students’ whereabouts. However, up to date June 6, almost 2 months after the tragedy, more than 200 of the kidnapped girls have not still reunited with their families.
If you wish to know how this story develops, use
Know more about this news? Update the info!