PREMIUM TIMES reported that terrorists, armed with sophisticated weapons, stormed the school on motorcycles, abducted the students from their dormitory, killed the vice principal, and injured a local security guard.
The opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has condemned the abduction of 25 schoolgirls from Maga Comprehensive Girls' Secondary School in Danko Wasagu Local Government Area of Kebbi State.
Ini Ememobong, the new spokesperson of the party, condemned the abduction in a statement on Monday.
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He described the incident as another tragic reminder of the rising insecurity confronting Nigerians since President Bola Tinubu assumed office.
Mr Ememobong accused the Tinubu administration of repeatedly politicising the insecurity situation instead of addressing it decisively.
"The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) strongly condemns the attack on the Government Girls Comprehensive Senior Secondary School (GGCSS), Maga, in Danko Wasagu Local Government Area of Kebbi State, where bandits killed the Vice Principal, Hassan Yakubu Makuku, and abducted 25 students.
"This tragic incident further highlights the alarming rise in insecurity that has become the lived reality of the majority of Nigerians under the Tinubu-led APC administration, which has consistently preferred the politicisation of governance over the protection of citizens.
When a government fails in its primary duty of safeguarding lives and property, it must accept responsibility and deal decisively with the issues, rather than act aloof or attempt to deflect from the core issues, as this administration has repeatedly done," he said.
PREMIUM TIMES reported that terrorists, armed with sophisticated weapons, stormed the school on motorcycles, abducted the students from their dormitory, killed the vice principal, and injured a local security guard, Ali Maga.
Police authorities and the Kebbi State Government confirmed the abductions, saying a tactical team engaged the attackers in a gun duel, but the terrorists escaped through the school's fence.
This is not the first time Kebbi State, governed by APC's Nasir Idris, has witnessed mass abductions. In June 2021, the Dogo Gide group kidnapped about 80 students and five teachers from the Federal Government College, Birnin Yauri.
Similarly, in 2014, Boko Haram abducted hundreds of schoolgirls from Chibok in Borno State under the watch of then-governor Kashim Shettima, now Nigeria's vice president.
In May 2021, terrorists stormed an Islamic school in Tegina, Niger State, kidnapping nearly 200 students. The attack came a few days after 14 students kidnapped from Greenfield University in Kaduna State were freed.
In February that same year, terrorists kidnapped nearly 300 girls from a boarding school in Jangebe, Zamfara State. Most of them were later freed.
In 2024, terrorists kidnapped more than 100 students from a joint elementary school in Kuriga, Kaduna State. The students were subsequently freed a few months later, with the government claiming that no ransom was paid.
PDP commiserates with victim's family
The PDP extended its condolences to the parents of the abducted students, the family of the slain vice principal, and the Kebbi State Government.
"We commiserate with the parents of the abducted students, the family of the slain Vice Principal, as well as the staff, students, and management of the affected school, and the government of Kebbi State", he said.
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The party also noted that the Kebbi incident adds to the recent kidnappings across Nasarawa, Plateau, Kano, and Katsina States.
Mocking President Tinubu's Renewed Hope Agenda, Mr Ememobong said the situation across the country does not reflect the promise made to Nigerians.
"Apart from this highly disturbing Maga School incident, other abductions have taken place in Nasarawa, Plateau, Kano and Katsina in recent times, and this is clearly not the hope (renewed and 'unrenewed') promised Nigerians," he mocked.
The party called on President Tinubu to prioritise security and bring an end to the recurring violence and abductions.
"We therefore call on President Tinubu to devote urgent and sufficient attention to securing the lives and property of Nigerians so that this tragic cycle can finally come to an end. Or do we want a foreign country to threaten the government on this?
Let the killings stop!" the statement said.
