Still On Dapchi Abduction

On Monday, February 19, 2018, Nigerians woke up to hear the sad and very worrisome news of another national tragedy following the abduction of 110 students of the Government Girls Science and Technical College, Dapchi in Yobe State.
The abduction which was successfully executed by the notorious Boko Haram insurgents is the second in the series after over 200 Chibok girls were similarly abducted in 2014, during President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration.
However, respite came last Monday, March 21, 2018 when the news broke out that 104 of the abducted girls had been released in batches while the remaining five reportedly died in captivity.
Reports also say that one of the Dapchi school girls, a Christian, was held back on account of her Christian faith which the insurgents consider a taboo to their Islamic faith.
Until their release, following what officials of the Muhammadu Buhari-led administration described as “intense negotiation” with the Boko Haram insurgents, the Dapchi girls spent well over 32 days in captivity under circumstances that are better imagined than described.
While The Tide appreciates Federal Government’s efforts in the release of the girls, it must be sounded loud and clear that the whole scenario about the unfortunate incident is symptomatic of very serious security lapses on the part of the nation’s security apparatchik.
We make bold to insist that the Nigerian Military and the Police failed in their responsibilities by not responding swiftly to such a national emergency when it mattered most.
Considering the fact that the Chibok girls debacle is yet to be fully resolved four years after, the Dapchi incident is not only very unfortunate but another national shame and one too many.
Particularly worrisome is the Amnesty International’s (AI) revelations that Nigeria’s security agencies ignored several signals and calls for timely intervention before the abduction of the students.
The global human rights watchdog claimed that six hours to the sad event, no fewer than five calls were put across to security forces between 2.30 and 6.30pm on that fateful day. But the calls were not heeded, hence, the successful abduction of the girls by the insurgents.
AI further stated that from its findings, the Nigerian Army Command in Geidam, which is 54 kilometers away from Dapchi, was alerted when the insurgents were spotted at Fuchimiran, leading to Gumsa, a village of about 30 kilometres from Dapchi, but there was no response until after the abduction.
Albeit, the Nigerian Army has since denied AI’s claims, we find the whole affair as messy, discomfiting and unacceptable, considering even the manner in which the Dapchi girls’ abductors gleefully conducted the business of their release.
The Tide finds it difficult to accept the military’s dismissal of AI’s revelation as “outright falsehood”. Its claim, even from its face value, is a serious indictment, not just on the nation’s security network but on the entire Nigerian nation that prides itself as a regional power in the global arena, as Boko Haram, a ragtag and extremist Islamic group continues to perpetrate its devilish acts with confounding sophistication
It is against this backdrop that we implore the Presidency to ensure that any probe panel investigating the circumstances surrounding the Dapchi saga does a thorough job with a view to bringing those found culpable to justice.
Notwithstanding the knocks and kudos that have been trailing the Dapchi girls release which the maverick All Progressives Congress Senator, Shehu Sani says would make a good movie, we insist that the Dapchi incident is not just a tragedy of immense proportion but an insult to the nation’s security community. Hence, the Buhari administration must accept responsibility for this and other atrocities committed by the Boko Haram insurgents since 2015 when the APC government came on board.