The Ashlee Momoh Foundation has urged the Federal Government to intensify efforts to urgently rescue dozens of abducted pupils from Lassa and Mussa communities in Askira-Uba in Borno State.
The Chief Executive Officer of the foundation, Princess Ashlee Momoh, made the appeal in a statement on Saturday in Abuja. Momoh said the pupils, including toddlers as young as two years old, had spent approximately over 150 days in captivity violating their fundamental human rights.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that 78 children were reportedly abducted on May 15, at Mussa Primary and Junior Secondary School, and nearby homes in Askira-Uba Local Government Area. The abductees included nursery school pupils
Momoh called on the government to accelerate strategic military action to address the lingering security crisis and facilitate the immediate reunion of the pupils with their families.
“Our thoughts and prayers remain with the parents and loved ones who have been subjected to severe emotional and psychological trauma all this while. Prayers must, however, be matched with decisive action. Our gallant military are fully capable of neutralizing the abductors and rescuing our children,” she said.
She cited the military’s swift resolution of the Oyo school abduction incident as proof of capacity, stressing that the abducted children deserve a free, unhindered life like every other Nigerian. She said that the foundation would embark on a 21-day peaceful campaign at Unity Fountain, Maitama, Abuja, to demand immediate unconditional release of the pupils.
According to her, the sustained 21-day rally aims to draw global and national attention to the plight of the missing pupils and demand their immediate, unconditional release. She, therefore, called on well-meaning Nigerians, civil society organisations and Askira-Uba residents in Abuja to participate en masse.
- Source: NAN
