President Bola Tinubu has directed security agencies to rescue the remaining female students of the Federal University Gusau, Zamfara State, recently abducted by terrorists.
This was as the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), has also condemned the development, describing it as "one abduction far too many."
The students were abducted in the early hours of Friday at their off-campus hostels in Sabon Gida village, Bungudu Local Government Area of Zamfara State.
In a statement yesterday by the presidential spokesperson, Ajuri Ngelale, the president, while condemning the situation he described as reprehensible, said there was no moral justification for such heinous crimes against innocent victims, whose only "offence" was their pursuit of quality education.
He, however, commiserated with all the families directly impacted by the sad incident and affirmed that his administration had a solemn duty to protect every Nigerian citizen, and that in line with this commitment, assured the families of the abducted students that no effort would be spared in ensuring their safe return.
Tinubu further pledged the determination of the federal government towards ensuring that educational institutions remained sanctuaries of knowledge, growth, and opportunity, and totally free from the menacing acts of terrorists.
But the ACF, in its statement in Kaduna, also yesterday, called on the federal government to ensure that the students were released unharmed.
According to the statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Prof. Tukur Mohammad-Baba, the forum said the incident had serious implications on the girl-child education.
It said, although official information about the incident was scanty, "personal testimonies from witnesses to the disturbing incident suggests that the attack was well-planned, coordinated and executed by the bandits."
"Evidently, female students were specifically targeted, and the bandits were at the crime scene fully prepared. Efforts to repel the bandits by the Nigerian Army neither deterred nor stopped the bandits from going off with a yet-to-be fully ascertained number of hapless victims.
"ACF condemns the abductions in the strongest of terms. It is very disconcerting that such a most unfortunate criminal incident is not the first of its kind in memory but it certainly is one abduction far too many to occur in any community in Nigeria, nor elsewhere in the world," the statement stated.
The forum lamented that, "The incident is very worrisome, with very negative implication, especially, for the girl-child education.
"A pointer to the unfolding tragedy is in an apparent 'voice note' on social media where a girl was heard stating that her father had called her home, ordering that her pursuit of a university degree be abandoned; another was heard advising intending candidates for admission not to select this particular institution as place of choice.
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"This is an absolutely and highly regrettable development to be condemned in all its ramifications," and therefore called for prayers for the immediate and unconditional release of the abducted students unharmed.
It also called on the security forces "not to relent in the efforts to contain banditry and terrorism in Zamfara State and elsewhere in the country."
The forum "commended the Zamfara state government for its timely and quick response to the situation through a high-powered delegation on a confidence-building visit to the scene to commiserate and reassure the community about the government's commitment to citizens' safety and security."
It further called on the federal government "to spare no efforts in ensuring that the abducted students were released unharmed forthwith."
Consequently, it urged the federal government "to rejig Nigeria's security architecture and come up with new multi-pronged containment strategies against security and related existential threats bedeviling schools and indeed all communities. Such new strategies should aim at the total eradication of the scourge of banditry and terrorism country-wide."
