Borno Elders Plead For Rescue Of 78 Abducted Students, Others

The Hawul Askira-Uba Elders Forum in Borno State has appealed to President Bola Tinubu and Governor Babagana Zulum to intensify efforts to rescue the abducted 78 students and 38 other persons in the state who have spent 100 days in captivity.

The forum, accompanied by the lawmaker representing Askira-Uba/Hawul federal constituency of Borno State, Hon. Midala Balami and some family members of the victims made the appeal while addressing journalists in Abuja yesterday.

Speaking on behalf of the forum, the secretary, Malla Gadzama, said for 100 days, the families had lived through unimaginable pain, anxiety, fear and suffering.

He said the victims include 42 pupils and students from Mussa Primary and Junior Day Secondary School who were abducted on May 15, 2026.

He said; “On that same day, schoolchildren and teachers were abducted in Oyo State. While the Oyo victims we re subsequently rescued, families of the Mussa victims continue to wait for the safe return of their loved ones.”

The secretary recalled that 36 students were abducted from Government
Day Secondary School, Lassa, on June 29, 2026 while they were writing their National Examinations Council (NECO) examination.

“The children were abducted while pursuing their education, children whose primary concern should have been completing their examinations, returning home safely and building their futures,” Gadzama said.

He also demanded the immediate rescue of the 38 other people reportedly abducted along Buratai Road to Maiduguri, as well as all those taken along the Chibok route and other major and vulnerable routes across Borno State.

“These are not statistics, they are children, they are sons and daughters, they are brothers and sisters, they are wives and

Husbands, they are fathers and mothers. They are human beings with families waiting, praying and crying for them

every single day.

“Behind every number is a family whose life has been turned upside down. Behind every missing child is a mother waiting at the door. Behind every missing son or daughter is a father asking what more could have been done.

“Behind every missing husband or wife is a family struggling

to survive the unbearable uncertainty of not knowing whether their loved one is alive, safe or suffering.

“100 days is too long! 100 days without our children,100 days of sleepless nights, 100 days of tears and fear, 100

days of uncertainty, 100 days of families asking one simple question: Where are our loved ones, and when are they coming home?”

Appealing directly to Tinubu, the scribe of the forum asked the president to urgently intervene and ensure that every available national security resource is mobilised towards the rescue of these abducted children and citizens.