The abducted schoolchildren and staff from a secondary and primary school in Kuriga, Chikun Local Government Area of Kaduna State have regained freedom.
The Kaduna State Governor, Uba Sani confirmed this in a terse statement, in the early hours of Sunday.
The statement read: “In the name of Allah the Beneficent, the Most Merciful, I wish to announce that our Kuriga school children have been released.
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“Our special appreciation goes to our dear President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR for prioritising the safety and security of Nigerians and particularly ensuring that the abducted Kuriga school children are released unharmed.
“While the school children were in captivity, I spoke with Mr. President several times.
“He shared our pains, comforted us and worked round the clock with us to ensure the safe return of the children.
“Special mention must also be made of our dear brother, the National Security Adviser, Mal. Nuhu Ribadu for his exemplary leadership.
“I spent sleepless nights with Mal. Ribadu fine tuning strategies and coordinating the operations of the security agencies, which eventually resulted in this successful outcome.
“The Nigerian Army also deserves special commendation for showing that with courage, determination and commitment, criminal elements can be degraded and security restored in our communities.
“We also thank all Nigerians who prayed fervently for the safe return of the school children. This is indeed a day of joy. We give Almighty Allah all the glory.”
On March 7, armed men invaded the Local Government Authority Education (LGEA) Primary School where about 200 pupils and students of Government Secondary School (GSS) Kuriga were abducted.
The armed men stormed the school while the children were participating in their morning Assemble exercise. An unascertained number of staff members were also abducted.
However, 25 schoolchildren were said to have returned home that morning, leaving behind 287 victims with the captors.
Six days after their abduction, the captors demanded N1bn for their release, a development that occurred barely 24 hours after Islamic Scholar Gumi Ahmad told the federal government he was willing to expedite the release of the schoolchildren through negotiation.
According to SBM Intelligence, a security assessment and consulting firm, Kaduna topped the chart as the state with the highest number of kidnapped cases with no fewer than 132 cases recorded from 2019 to March 15, 2024.
Within the period under review, no fewer than 3,969 residents have also been kidnapped by non-state government actors, making the state one of the most volatile areas in North West Nigeria.