14th April 2014, exactly 2 years today,
219 (or so) girls were kidnapped from their school hostel by terrorists in the
dead of the night, whisked off to the Sambisa forest and they are yet to
breathe the air freedom. Now known as the Chibok Girls, each of these girls is
somebody’s daughter, sister, friend. Each is a potential wife, mother and part
of the labour force. Each must have had dreams of being great, maybe a Doctor,
Lawyer, Entrepreneur etc. these are girls for whom the future holds loads of
promises. But these dreams and promises have been put on hold for 2 years and
counting.
It’s been two years of living without friends and
family. Probably living in the forest denied of decent clothes and the comfort
they grew up in. Denied of their privacy, probably forced to bath and ease
themselves in open spaces. Denied their fundamental human rights, probably
married off to strangers or sold into slavery as the terrorist boss had
boasted. Some escapees revealed that most of these girls have died after
falling sick as a result of their inability to cope with the dehumanizing
conditions they have been forced to live in. Other reports have it that some of
these girls are the female suicide bombers terrorising people in North Eastern
Nigeria. They say these girls actually volunteer to be suicide bombers, hoping
that death by bomb will bring an end to the brutality they face daily at the
hands of their captors.
Imagine how these girls must have cried themselves
to sleep every night (assuming they are allowed to sleep) believing that no one
cares; that if anyone cared they would have been rescued from their captors.
But are they so wide off the mark? Response of government to the plight of
these girls was too, too slow. If they really matter could government and their
agencies not have rescued these girls long ago? What was government thinking of
when they refused to negotiate immediately for the release of these girls? They
claimed they were not going to negotiate with terrorists but went back on their
words when they thought the release of the girls could help them win the
elections and hold on to power. Then it was too late to negotiate and the
innocent young girls remain in captivity in a country that boast of its love
for the rule of law and enforcement of the rights of all citizens. What a shame! Are these
girls not citizens of Nigeria?
It has been two long years; yet, government keeps
paying lip service to the release of these innocent girls. Countless other
abducted girls have been rescued, why not the Chibok Girls? In December 2015,
CNN aired report that claimed they knew the whereabouts of 15 of the Chibok
Girls. If we have a responsive government, why was the report not investigated
and at least have these 15 girls rescued?
A friend once said, “You guys are not serious and
realistic in this Chibok Girls’ issue. Shekau (the terrorist boss) is known by
everyone to be a destroyer of life, how could you people expect to get the
girls back, he would have shared them among his followers to be raped
repeatedly and he would have wasted most of the girls.” Be that as it may, the
truth is, we cannot afford to lose hope. We must believe. There must be a
remnant that have somehow been preserved and are waiting to be rescued. For the
sake of the parents, siblings, relatives and friends of these girls, there must
a closure.
Enough of the endless speeches and meaningless
promises. It is time for concerted action. It is important that government and her
relevant agencies get serious about this issue and deploy all their connections
and leads to ensure the speedy rescue and reintegration of these girls in of
the society. An immediate closure is important for the sanity of the parents,
for the future of the Chibok Girls and our daughters who though are not bin
captivity, yet they constantly look over their shoulders in fear not knowing if
they are next in line for abduction. Anything short of this just does not make
any sense.
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