Rescue a matter of time, says defence minister as service chiefs visit Katsina
Governor Aminu Masari on Sunday said 333 students of Government Science Secondary School, Kankara are still missing.
He made the disclosure in government house Katsina when the Minister of Defence, Gen. Salihi Magashi (retd.), led the nation’s service chiefs on a sympathy visit to the state over Friday’s bandits’ abduction of students in the state.
Those on the entourage included the Chief of Defence Staff, Chief of Air Staff, and the Director-General, National Intelligence Agency.
Governor Massari said, “The children so far kidnapped cut across the state because the boarding school houses all children from all parts of the state and some even from outside the state.
“It has a population of 839 and so far we are yet to account for 333 students. We are still counting because more are coming out from the forest and we are calling those parents that have phone numbers to find out whether or not their children have gone back home.
“Based on the available record we have, we are still searching for 333 students through either the forest or their parents to ascertain the actual number that has been kidnapped.”
Governor Masari also said the bandits were yet to contact either the government or anybody on the abduction.
He assured that efforts were being made to ensure the students’ release.
“We, as a government, are yet to be contacted by any group or person responsible for the kidnap of the students.” he said.
General Magashi, in his response, assured the state of the Federal Government’s assistance.
He said, “I was here around August on the same kind of mission to sympathise with the government regarding the farmers-herders’ clashes. Today, we are here also to sympathise with you over the recent abduction of secondary school students which is a more or less ruthless exercise conducted to temper with the education of the students.”
He later assured after a closed door meeting with the governor that all the abducted students would return home safely “within the next few hours”.
The minister and the service chiefs were in Katsina on a sympathy visit over the abduction of the students on Friday by bandits.
Others in the entourage included the Chief of Defence Staff, the Chief of Air Staff, the Chief of Naval Staff, the Inspector-General— of Police, the DG, DSS and the DG, NIA as well as heads of security agencies in Katsina, including the Commissioner of Police.
The Defence Minister said from the briefings he was given by heads of security agencies on the ground, the rescue of the students was a matter of time.
He said, “With the brief we received from the sister security agencies in the state, this task will be very simple.
“Within the next few hours, we will ensure that these people are back without any collateral damage to the people of Katsina State we have strategised. We only need prayers.
“All hands are on deck to ensure that within the armed forces and the police the task will be accomplished.”
Governor Aminu Masari thanked the delegation for the visit, assuring that the state was making every efforts to ensure the release of the students.
He said, “The children so far kidnapped cut across the state because the boarding school houses all children from all parts of the state and some even from outside the state. It (Government Science Secondary School, Kankara) has a population of 839 and so far we are yet to account for 333 students.”
