September 13, 2021 marked the beginning of yet another academic session that would run through, to the end of the year. Students and pupils of different schools and States, across the country are gradually finding their ways to the class rooms again to resume academic works. Academic works of some schools before now were brought to abrupt end in most of the schools in the Northern parts of the country, owing to unprecedented rates at which innocent school children were kidnapped and are still being abducted by terrorists and criminal gangs that now operate freely everywhere in the country.
The release of 70 students from one of the secondary schools in Zamfara State, last week after spending weeks in the terrorists den could not make headlines in some of the leading National Newspapers because the issue of abduction in Nigeria, unfortunately is becoming a way of life. Simply put; people are frustrated beyond measures. The rising cases of kidnapping certainly, going by the views expressed by parents whose wards were kidnapped and released may likely affect the enrolments of pupils in the schools, particularly in the Northern region where the inglorious activities of kidnapping and abductions are deeply rooted, till date.
The bandits at present do not respect any one and have continued to operate freely and daring everyone brazenly. The country as it were may have lost counts of those still under captivity as more people are still being kidnapped on daily basis, especially in Kaduna State that has become the hot bed for kidnapping at the moment. That the Federal Government is aware of those behind terrorism activities in the country, courtesy of a report released by the United Arab Emirates, is indeed a cheering news, and such revelations are surely what the country needs now if the battle against Boko Haram and bandits should be won in the country.
The declaration also by the top military brass recently, that it would not tolerate excuses from the commanders any longer was expected given that, many Nigerian soldiers had and have continued to pay the supreme price in the hands of the insurgents. This is why the planned reintegration or absorption of the so-called Boko Haram and bandits into the society is vehemently opposed by Nigerians whose arguments are that, these people that have caused havoc and devastation on the land should equally be given commensurate punishments, according to the law of the land.
For the fact that prominent Nigerians are asking citizens to defend themselves while many also are calling for total annihilation of the terrorists means that, the war on terror is far from over, even as the Government tries to offer the olive branch to see if normalcy could return, but all to no avail. The resumption of full academic activities is the best thing that can happen to any progressive society but here we live in an environment where some group of people from one section of the country are saying that western education is an abomination, yet they use guns and other sophisticated weapons that are science based to kill and maim fellow citizens and most recently, school age children have become the soft targets who are now abducted in their numbers.
We caution therefore that adequate security should be provided this time for all schools across the country, especially schools in Zamfara, Kaduna, Katsina, and Borno States. Also, the school authorities should be vigilant and ensure that students do not loiter about, and must not leave the school premises anyhow, even as we advise the owners of mega schools in these States to ensure that their security guards are armed to the teeth and remain at high alert at all times.
