One week after bandits attacked St. Mary’s Catholic Primary and Secondary Schools, Papiri, in Niger State, 265 teachers and children are still with the terrorists. This was confirmed by the Catholic Bishop of Kontagora, Bulus Yohanna.
NewsBits reports that there has been controversy since the incident took place, with the state government accusing the church of not being honest with the figures. However, speaking on Friday during an interview on ‘Sunrise Daily’, a programme on Channels Television, Yohanna was emphatic with the figures.
According to him, the figures comprise 12 teachers and 253 schoolchildren, adding that the diocese has forwarded the names of the hostages to the Niger State Governor, Umar Bago.
“We had 303 pupils and students missing, and 12 teachers also not seen. We added that number to make it 315, which cannot be accounted for after taking the headcount.
“Those who escaped went back home to their villages. When we started having calls of those who reunited with their parents, we were able to get 50 out of the 315, including staff and teachers who could not be accounted for. We deducted that number, so we now have 265. That is the number that is missing,” the cleric said.
He called on the Federal Government to deploy security operatives to secure schools in the North-Central state. Yohanna, who also chairs the Niger State chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, said the abduction has become a source of worry for the parents of the kidnapped schoolgirls. The Catholic bishop also revealed that two parents have died due to shock from the incident.
