By Ghazali Ibrahim
In one of Nigeria’s largest school abductions to date, gunmen on Friday kidnapped at least 303 students and 12 teachers from St. Mary’s Catholic School in the remote Papiri community of Niger state.
On Sunday, the chairman of the Niger state chapter of CAN and Catholic bishop of Kontagora diocese, Bulus Dauwa Yohanna, confirmed this development in a statement released.
He said the pupils regained freedom between Friday and Saturday and “quietly reunited with their families”.
According to the statement, the primary section has 430 pupils, out of which 377 are boarders and 53 day pupils.
“Currently, aside from the 50 pupils that escaped and have returned home, we have 141 pupils who were not taken. As it stands now, 236 pupils, three children belonging to staff members, 14 secondary school students, and 12 staff members remain with the abductors.”
The attack reportedly took place in the pre-dawn hours, with assailants targeting the boarding facility and abducting pupils and teachers en masse.
In response to the security challenges, the Niger state government has ordered the immediate closure of all boarding schools in the state and called for intensified military-civil cooperation to secure rural education hubs. Parents remain shocked and frustrated, grappling with the trauma and uncertainty surrounding their children’s fate.
As rescue efforts continue, negotiating with kidnappers appear inevitable, highlighting an escalating crisis of insecurity that poses threat to education across the country.
