Dapchi schoolgirls reunite with parents under heavy security

Adelani  Adepegba, Olaleye Aluko, Justin Tyopuusu and

Kayode Idowu

The freed Dapchi schoolgirls on Sunday were reunited with their parents in Dapchi town, Yobe State, after the Nigerian Air Force took them to the town under heavy security.

The girls, however, said they would not go back to their school while some parents declared that they would look for other schools outside the North-East for their children. One of them also said the Federal Government gave them N10,000 each before they left Abuja on Sunday.

A NAF C-130 Hercules Aircraft airlifted the schoolgirls on Sunday morning from Abuja to Maiduguri, Borno State, from where they were taken by road to Dapchi.

The girls arrived at about 3.30pm.

One of our correspondents learnt that apart from the freed schoolgirls, a boy and three teachers from the Government Girls Science and Technical College, Dapchi, were also on the flight.

The NAF Director of Public Relations and Information, Air Vice Marshal Olatokunbo Adesanya, confirmed the return of the girls to Dapchi in a statement.

Adesanya said, “The air force airlifted the Dapchi girls back to Maiduguri on Sunday from where they will be transported to Dapchi under an armed air escort, to reunite with their families. The return of the girls to their community took place after President Muhammadu Buhari and other top government officials received them at the Government House in Abuja on March 23.

“All the girls, including a boy and three teachers from the  school, were seen boarding the aircraft.”

One of our correspondents also reported that there was a wild celebration in Dapchi as the schoolgirls finally reunite with their families.

The girls were later handed over to their parents at the Assembly Hall of the school in Dapchi, the headquarters of Bursari Local Government Area of Yobe State.

They were presented to Governor Ibrahim Gaidam who was represented by the Commissioner for Information, Mala Musi, by a former Yobe State governor  now  a senator, Bukar Ibrahim, and his wife, Hajiya Khadija Ibrahim, who is the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs.

Ibrahim said 105 of the girls were students of the GGSTC, Dapchi while two were children living in the staff quarters of the college.

He called on the parents of the students not to be deterred by the abduction saga as the government had put in place measures to forestall a reccurrence.

Ibrahim thanked Nigerians for standing behind the people of Dapchi throughout their time of difficulty.

FG gave us N10,000 each – Freed girl

But some of the girls, including Aisha Kachalla, and Maryam Kontoma, who spoke to one of our correspondents, said they would not go back to their former school.

Aisha said all the freed girls had vowed not to go back to the school again for fear that Boko Haram might come back.

Maryam, on her part, said the trauma was too much for them to return to the school and called on government to provide an alternative school for them.

Aisha said the memory of the abduction was still with them, noting that many of the girls were not going back to the school.

Narrating how they were abducted on February 19, Aisha said they spent six hours on the first day on the road but they rested for two days in one village before getting to their destination.

“We crossed several rivers before settling down in a forest where we stayed for over three weeks.

“We were fed very well throughout our stay in captivity and we were called upon one day to enter the vehicles provided for our return.

“The only Christian girl among us, Leah, was not allowed to join us because she refused to renounce her faith. They told us that they would not harm us because we are Muslims but for the Christian girl they said she was not going to follow us,” she narrated.

Kachalla, who called for Leah’s release, said they were taken to a hospital on arrival in Abuja and were given N10,000 each for upkeep by the Federal Government.

Our daughters won’t school in N’East again

The Secretary of the Dapchi Girls’ Parents Association, Mallam Bukar Kachalla, said the girls in SSS3 preparing for WASSCE had already being relocated to the Government Girls’ College in Nguru for their final examination.

Kachalla, who said they were happy for the return of the girls, insisted that their daughters would not return to the GGSTC, Dapchi, adding that they would relocate their children to other schools.

He said, “No parent will take his daughter back to that school after what happened, they have in fact started looking for schools outside Yobe State.

“As for me, I am not ready to send my daughters to any school within the North-East, I am looking for school outside the geopolitical zone.”

He said they had not received any promise from the Federal Government on the kind of assistance that would be given to them and their wards on schooling outside the state.

Kachalla added that “one thing that I can say authoritatively is that no amount of security in Dapchi school would make me and many other parents return our children there.”

Another parent, Yahaya Tarbutu, a father of two of the freed schoolgirls, confirmed that his girls were now in his house. He thanked the Federal Government for making the reunion possible.

Tarbutu said, “The girls were flown to Maiduguri, from where they were brought to Dapchi. The authorities already dispatched the girls to the parents. They were brought to us around 3.30pm. All of us are happy. The town is happy. We thank God.”

According to eyewitnesses, the return of the schoolgirls was greeted with wild juilations as the people of the town were seen celebrating the girls’ return.

One of the eyewitnesses, Yusuf Ibrahim, told one of our correspondents on phone, that the girls who were looking unkempt when they were brought in by Boko Haram on Wednesday were now looking radiant and in high spirit.

He said in all 107 students were returned to them, explaining that 105 were students of the female boarding school and the other two were primary school pupils living with their parents in the staff quarters.

He said they were still awaiting Leah Sharibu’s return.

Ibrahim also confirmed that most of the parents had started looking for schools for their children outside Yobe State as they would not want to go through another traumatic experience.

Bako, a fake soldier, no conspiracy –Army

Meanwhile, the Nigerian Army on Sunday dismissed a claim that one of its personnel, one Sergeant David Bako, reportedly leaked how the Dapchi schoolgirls’ abduction was planned with N80m.

The army said there was no truth in the social media reports that Bako, who claimed to be a deserted soldier, ganged up with other soldiers to plan and execute the schoolgirls’ abduction after being paid by government officials.

The Director, Army Public Relations, Brig Gen Texas Chukwu, said, “The army has crosschecked its records and cannot find anyone called Sergeant David Bako, who neither serves in the army as deserted nor dismissed.

“The army requests the public to disregard the confession made by the so-called sergeant, who had never been in the army at all.”

We’ve no information on Leah’s return – Police

Meanwhile, the Inspector-General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, on Sunday recanted his statement that the last Dapchi schoolgirl, Leah Sharibu, being held by Boko Haram would soon be freed by the insurgents.

The IG, in a statement by the force spokesman, Jimoh Moshood, on Sunday in Abuja, claimed he was “misunderstood and misquoted.”

Idris, who spoke in an interview with journalists in Maiduguri, Borno State, had stated that he was aware that Leah would be released, adding that he did not visit Dapchi in order not to jeopardise the operation.

 He was quoted to have said, “Obviously, I am aware and that is what we are just discussing. I am supposed to go to Dapchi today but because of the girl, I learnt she may be released.”

 “It is a sort of understanding that we do not create much security situation and I move with a helicopter. By the time I fly there, they might think I break our promise and that was why I postponed the visit to Dapchi,” he said.

 But barely 12 hours after the comment, the IG denied saying Leah would be released, stressing that he had no information on the release of the girl.

 The statement said, “The comment of the IGP was misunderstood and misquoted. The misunderstanding may be as a result of the already released Dapchi schoolgirls expected back home in Yobe State today (Saturday) but could not arrive due to weather condition.

 “The IGP could not also proceed to Dapchi because of same weather condition. The force wishes the members of the public and the media to disregard the purported statement as not what the IGP meant.

 “The force therefore reiterates that it has no information yet on the release of the last Dapchi schoolgirl,” the police added.

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