Following the death threat issued by bandits on Wednesday, concerned parents of the abducted students of Federal University Gusau (FUG), Zamfara State are pleading with the federal government to act quickly and secure the lives of their children.
With the bandits threatening to kill some of the female students if their demands are not met, the parents said the government should urgently negotiate with the bandits for the freedom of their wards.
According to them, the plea became necessary given the dire situation and the fact that government has in the past engaged with other non-state actors, such as in the North East, at the height of the Boko Haram insurgency.
According to insider sources, there has been miffed dialogue spearheaded by the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), the Defence Headquarters and the Department of State Service (DSS) on how to ensure the students’ freedom from captivity.
Reports quoted some of the worried parents as disclosing that a series of WhatsApp messages have been released by the abductors threatening to killed some of the students who are being kept in an open space without shelter and medical attention whatsoever.
“This is terrible. We pray that Allah will return all of them to us very soon. But, sincerely speaking, we are calling on the government to reconsider using the kinetic approach in rescuing our children”, one of the parents was quoted as saying.
Messages have also been gotten from third parties, who said the WhatsApp audios were released by the foot soldiers of the late bandits’ leader, Ali Kachalla, asking the Federal government and security operatives to release their colleagues who are now in detention as a condition of sparing the lives of the abducted students.
This is as information emerged that the bandits have finally put aside their internal bickering to elect a new leader, who now has the kidnapped students in his custody with the threat of killing them if their demands are not met within the next seven days.
Among the demands being made by the bandits include freedom for some of their commanders who are currently with security operatives.
On December 13, 2023, reports emerged in the media that the bandits’ Commander, Ali Kachalla was killed during a reconnaissance by operatives of the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) at a location in Niger State. This was confirmed three days later, the Defence Headquarters (DHQ) with competent sources hinting that many of his lieutenants and foot soldiers were also neutralised in the process.
Military sources disclosed that the late Ali Kachalla was in charge of abducting over 50 students of FUG on September 21, 2023, who are mostly girls and young women.
The source said death of Ali Kachalla, who committed countless atrocities around Kaduna, Katsina, Niger, Sokoto, and Zamfara among other states, did unsettle his men, who are now threatening havoc, including killing some of the abducted university girls.
Since the death of Ali Kachalla, there has been apprehension in many quarters, especially among families and relatives of the people he abducted, for the safety of their loved ones.
In one of the 14 WhatsApp audio conversations, one of our reporters heard an informant talking to one of the bandits’ kingpins, urging them to rescind their decision on the school girls, saying mediation was ongoing.
In the audios reviewed on Wednesday and Thursday, the bandits’ leader, whose name could not be established, said, “We are selling our cattle to feed the girls, and we are tired….We are tired of feeding them. You should take this message to those concerned. We are giving them seven days to release our people.”
Responding, the informant said, “I urge you not to kill the girls because they are innocent.”
But the bandits’ leader said, “Then you should talk to the federal government to release our members. They have incarcerated our members for a long time.”
Speaking in Hausa, the bandits’ leader said in another audio clip: “We heard that they (security operatives) want to use force to liberate the university students from us. Okay, before they use force, tell them that we would slaughter at least three of the girls in the first instance and share the pictures for the world to see.
“What we are saying is that if they think they have superior power to free the girls, why didn’t they confront us when we went to abduct them in the first place? We heard all that they were saying because we listened to the radio. They must release our members so that we can release the captives that are with us.”
In another audio clip, the informant pleaded with the bandits to exercise more patience: “It has been a while since I saw the mediators, but I will try my best and meet with them and ensure an amicable resolution of the problem.”
The bandit’s leader said, “You are well aware that they (the government) have not been straightforward in their approach. They would say one thing today and another thing tomorrow.”
The informant then said, “I still want to assure you that based on our discussions, those in charge have promised that they…would be freed and bring them for exchange with the girls.”
It was learnt that one of the commanders the bandits want to be released is called Ibrahim, an elder brother to Ali Kachalla, even as there are over 50 of their members in custody, according to them.
One of our sources said though some of the captured bandits were still alive he was not sure of others.
The source said, “Some of the bandits were arrested during crossfire and they sustained injuries. So, you cannot tell whether they are still alive or not, it is a dicey situation.” – With Daily Trust report
