The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has appealed to authorities concerned to use all means to rescue university and secondary school students from their abductors.
Two female Microbiology students of Federal University, Gusau, Zamfara, and another 10 female secondary school students of Kachia LGA in Kaduna State had been in captivity.
Vanessa Kwere, the deputy coordinator of Inter-Campus Affairs of NANS Zone A, appealed in a statement in Birnin Kebbi on Saturday.
Ms Kwere issued the statement after the NANS delegation met with the university management shortly after the union’s zonal convention in Jigawa recently.
She pointed out that the call became imperative because the abducted students were under the government’s care; hence they remained the government’s property.
“We urge the students to remain calm and keep praying for the safe return of their friends and sisters,” she said.
According to her, the union met with the school management, including Ahmad Galadima, the acting vice chancellor, who is also the current deputy vice chancellor of the university; Dean of Students’ Affairs, Lawal Sa’ad; Deputy Dean, Student Affairs, Dr Tagba as well as the Chief Security Officer.
Ms Kwere said during the meeting, they discussed how the incident happened and the strategies being currently applied by the institution to rescue the abducted students.
The deputy coordinator noted that the dean of student affairs had enlightened them on the efforts made by the university to guarantee the safe return of the abducted students.
In a related development, the union expressed deep concern over the abduction of about 10 female students of Kachia LGA in Kaduna State, who, according to a preliminary report, were students of Government Secondary School, Awon.
“We are in constant turmoil because of these reoccurring incidents; our governing bodies have failed to protect us from such menace, and students no longer feel safe in their institutions or anywhere at all.
“Predicaments like this are what discourage and interfere with the educational process of Nigerian students; looking at most of these cases, victims always turn out to be females, we’re fragile beings who are abducted, tortured and explored.
“We students’ representatives demand a serious and immediate intervention from the Federal Government and all relevant security bodies, it is our right to feel safe wherever we are,” she pleaded.
(NAN)
