President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has directed security agencies to leave no stone unturned in ensuring the immediate rescue of pupils and teachers kidnapped from the Government Secondary School and LEA Primary School in Kuriga, Kaduna State.
Vice President Kashim Shettima disclosed this on Saturday in Kaduna State during a meeting with the state governor, Senator Uba Sani, security agencies and stakeholders, including traditional rulers and some affected parents from Chikun local government area of the State.
Speaking at the meeting, VP Shettima, in a statement by his media aide, Stanley Nkwocha, said all hands were on deck to ensure that all the abducted persons were safely recovered, adding that efforts were being made to ensure an end to such menace.
He noted that the President was personally pained by the unfortunate incident, assuring, however, that Tinubu is equal to the task of securing the country.
He said, “I am here at the behest of His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, to empathise, to solidarize with the government and people of Kaduna over the sad incident of the kidnapping of our school kids. The President was personally pained by what happened and he has instructed the security agencies to leave no stone unturned until we return our kids to their parents.
“He (President) is in regular contact with the governor of Kaduna State. Today, so far, he has spoken with the governor four times; he has spoken with me three times about the rescue of the kids.
“But as rightly captured by His Excellency, discretion is better. I will align with His Excellency and appeal to our friends in the media. You are all stakeholders in the Nigeria project; let us be very selective in our choice of reporting for the interest of our kids who are not currently with us.
“Once again, on behalf of my principal, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, please, accept our heartfelt sympathy over the travails that have befallen our people. Be rest assured that the President is equal to the tasks. The very essence of the existence of government is to secure the lives and property of the citizenry.
“He has tasked the entire security architecture in the country to go all out and get back our kids safely.”
Shettima, however, commended the media and solicited their continued support, saying, “Our friends from the media, we have come a long way and we will go a long way with you together. You are our friends, you are our contemporaries, you are our brothers.”
Speaking earlier, Kaduna State governor, Sen. Sani, thanked the President for his concern and the efforts being made to rescue the victims.
He confirmed that President Tinubu, Vice President Shettima and the security agencies have been working closely with Kaduna State government since the unfortunate incident happened.
While thanking Vice President Shettima for his visit, he cautioned against politicisation of the incident, saying the lives of those involved and the agonies of their families must be of utmost concern to all and sundry.
Governor Sani specifically called on the media to work with the government as partners in the bid to rid the society of criminal elements instead of resorting to sensationalism.
He stated: “I will like to thank His Excellency, the Vice President, for visiting us here in Kaduna this evening to commiserate with the people and Government of Kaduna over the unfortunate incident that happened in the community of Chikun local government of the state.
“I am happy that since the incident happened President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima, as well as the security agencies in the country, have been working closely with Kaduna State government to ensure the safe return of the children.
“Here in Kaduna, we have been working with the community as well as the leadership of Chikun local government to ensure that we collaborate with the relevant security agencies to ensure that all the children return home safely.
“At this juncture, I will like to caution the media to be very careful in the way they make their own reports because at this critical time, we have to avoid politicizing this very unfortunate incident.
“What is important to us is the safe return of the children, and of course, we cannot allow anybody to jeopardize the safety of the children that were kidnapped.
“The community has been very cooperative; they are working with the Kaduna State government, working with the relevant security agencies and I can say that we are making some progress but we are going to disclose what we have been doing.”
On his part, the traditional ruler of Chukun land, Etsu Chukun, HRH Ishaku Yari, appealed for more security presence, just as he appealed for the fencing of schools in the area.
