By Adesina Wahab
Parents under the aegis of the National Parent Teacher Association of Nigeria, NAPTAN, have frowned at Friday’s invasion of some schools in Borno and Oyo states where some students and teachers were abducted by yet to be identified armed men.
The parents noted that the evil act of attacking schools should not be allowed to resurface again, saying it is a great disservice to education in Nigeria.
Speaking in an interview with Saturday Nggossips, the Chairman, Board of Trustees of NAPTAN, Chief Deolu Ogunbanjo, described the incidents as unfortunate.
“The incidents are very unfortunate and they came when we thought the attacks on schools have been put to an end. We are not happy with the resurgence of such evil acts. There should be no way for evil in our country. We call for the deployment of armed Civil Defence Corps officers, armed policemen and even Amotekun operatives in our schools.
“The Safe Schools Initiative must be given the bite to work and function well. Also, this is where the issue of state police comes in. The proposal by police authorities that state police may take another four years to fully come on stream may not be feasible with the way things are. State police should be allowed to start as soon as possible. Every hand must he on deck to tame this monster threatening our education system,” he said.
Ogunbanjo expressed the sympathy of the association to victims of the attacks and called on security agencies to ensure the safe return of the abducted students and teachers.
Recall that on Friday morning, gunmen invaded the Ahoro-Esinele community in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State, abducting the principal of a secondary school and an unspecified number of students.
The incident reportedly occurred between 8:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m. at Community High School, Ahoro-Esinele, according to sources in the community.
Eyewitnesses said the armed assailants stormed the school premises and forcefully whisked away several students, whose exact number had yet to be confirmed. The school principal, Mrs. Rachael Alamu, was also kidnapped during the attack.
Sources further disclosed that a teacher sustained gunshot injuries in the course of the invasion, although the severity of the injuries remains unclear.
Also, unspecified number of pupils and students of Mussa Primary and Junior Secondary School in Askira-Uba local government area of Borno State were abducted when some armed members of Boko Haram/ISWAP terrorists invaded their school premises in the early hours of Friday.
Mussa is a remote village and shares boundary with Sambisa Forest, an enclave of terrorists.
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