Kawu Baraje, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, APC, on Sunday, told the federal government to accept the swap deal offered by members of the radical Islamist sect Boko Haram.
Abducted Chibok girls in a recent video
Speaking to journalist at the graduation ceremony of Baraje Centre for Arabic and Islamic Studies in llorin, Kwara State capital noted that, no sacrifice would be too much to secure the release of the abducted school girls, and insisted that the federal government should consider the swap option.
“If the United States of America swapped five prisoners to secure the life of an America soldier, it will not be too much for the Federal Government to negotiate and meet the sect’s condition for the release of the abducted girls” he said. “Whatever kind of appeasement that will appease the people that are holding these girls should be done, whether negotiation, whether transition, we saw America do it. Just for one person America released five insurgents”.
According to him, Nigeria was in a dire situation following the current security challenges. He stated that not until the girls are released, Nigerians would not believe the efforts made by the Federal Government in securing their release.
Baraje, however, revealed that efforts were on to affiliate the Islamiya school with Al-Ansur University in Saudi Arabia in order to provide opportunities for higher education.
It would be recalled that over 234 school girls were kidnapped from Government Girls Secondary School, Chibok Borno State by the Boko Haram sect on April 14. The sect, however, offered to swap the girls for the release of their detained brethren, an option the federal government had earlier agreed to, and invited the only Nigerian journalist/civilian, Ahmad Salkida, who reportedly has access to Boko Haram to act as negotiator between them and the Islamist.
Recently the Ijaw National Congress, INC, described the Islamist as murderers, and argued that agreeing to swap their brethren for the abducted girls would show bad precedence for the country, noting that instead of swapping, Government should explore other means of ensuring the girls rescue.
However, the fate of the abducted Chibok girls seems to rest in the hands of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, whom the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) recently pleaded with the federal government to allow negotiate with Boko Haram leaders in a bid to free the girls.
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