Eight days after the harrowing invasion of St. Mary’s Catholic Primary and Secondary Schools in Papiri, Agwara Local Government Area, the parents of the victims have expressed outrage at the Niger State Government’s handling of the crisis.
Converging on the school premises to compile a register of the victims, distraught parents berated Governor Umaru Mohammed Bago for describing their children as merely “missing” rather than abducted.
They further accused the administration of insensitivity, noting that no government official has visited the community to sympathize with them since the incident occurred over a week ago.
The aggrieved parents, many weeping and holding placards with inscriptions such as “Bring back our students and teachers,” “We need security in Agwara,” and “Is education a crime?”, described the government’s stance as a mockery of their pain.
“Our children are not missing”
The controversy stems from state government claims that the school authority was failing to cooperate in providing a list of students, alongside official rhetoric suggesting the children might have fled into the bush rather than being taken.
Mathew Geje, a parent with a child in the school, vehemently rejected this narrative.
“What we are hearing is that the government is saying our children are missing. Please, our children are not missing; they have been abducted and are all alone in the bush without their parents,” Geje lamented. “No government group has come to console or meet with us.”
Mr. Bulus Duchi, whose three children (in JSS 1, Primary 1, and Primary 4) were taken, questioned the Governor’s priorities.
“We heard the Governor went to New Bussa to see the Emir. Is New Bussa Papiri or Agwara?” Duchi asked. “He did not even sympathize with us enough to identify with us in our period of pain.”
Fears of torment
The atmosphere at the school was one of gloom as parents shared their worst fears. Samson Najadi, a parent whose two children were abducted, offered a chilling perspective.
Having been a victim of abduction himself in 2021, Najadi expressed horror at what the children-some as young as six must be enduring.
“I was abducted before; I know how it feels. There is usually little food and little water. If you are sick, there is no hospital,” Najadi recounted.
“During my captivity, there was no bathing at all. It was a torment I do not want to recall, but now I have to think about my children facing the same condition.”
Another parent, too overcome with emotion to give his name, wept profusely while asking, “My children are too little to have been left alone in the bush for eight days. What are they eating? Are they well?”
Eyewitness accounts and helicopters
Contrary to government claims that the numbers were negligible or that the bandits were a small group, the Principal of the school, Rev. Sr. Felicia Gyang, disclosed that the attackers arrived with significant logistics.
“The bandits came with several vehicles and motorcycles which were used to convey the children,” Sr. Gyang stated. “We also heard a helicopter flying around the school during the abduction, which left some minutes after the bandits departed.”
A teacher, Martha Mathias, whose husband was abducted, shared a terrifying account of the night. She narrowly escaped because her crying baby and five-year-old daughter created a complication for the bandits.
“They entered all the teachers’ rooms, gathered them, and took them to where the children were,” Mathias said. She described how the bandits, who spoke Hausa, Igbo, and Kambari, threatened to shoot her five-year-old daughter if she didn’t stop screaming.
“Because of that, one of them asked me to take the children back to the lodge and stay with them.”
Church authorities clarify figures
The Catholic Diocese of Kontagora has moved to clarify the statistics and debunk claims of non-cooperation. Most Rev. Bulus Dauwa Yohanna, the Bishop of the Diocese and Proprietor of the school, explained that the institution serves over 50 rural communities, necessitating boarding facilities for young children who would otherwise travel hours daily.
Yohanna noted that the school has a total population of 689 students. “At first count, 315 were missing, out of which 303 were students. However, after some days, we started receiving calls that some children had returned home, having fled during the attack,” he explained.
He insisted that the church has been transparent. “I have personally sent information regarding the missing persons and the state of the school to the security agencies and government. What other cooperation do they want?”
As the compilation of the register continues, Rev. Sr. Blessing Amodu, Headteacher of the nursery and primary section, pleaded with authorities to move beyond rhetoric and expedite action to rescue the pupils before it is too late.
