President Bola Tinubu has directed the Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, to relocate to Kebbi State following the abduction of 24 schoolgirls in the state. Mr Matawalle, a former governor of Zamfara State, was instructed to remain in Kebbi to oversee security operations aimed at rescuing the abducted students. The 24 students of Government Girls Comprehensive Secondary School in Maga town were kidnapped by gunmen around 4 a.m. on Monday.
The minister, who is expected to arrive in Birnin Kebbi on Friday, previously handled several cases of banditry and mass abductions during his tenure as Zamfara governor from 2019 to 2023. On 26 February 2021, armed bandits kidnapped 279 female students aged between 10 and 17 from Government Girls Science Secondary School, Jangebe. The students were released on 2 March 2021.
President Tinubu has also postponed his planned trips to Johannesburg, South Africa, and Luanda, Angola, as he awaits further security briefings on the kidnapped Kebbi schoolgirls and the attack on Christ Apostolic Church worshippers in Eruku, Kwara State.
Source: https://www.premiumtimesng.com/
