A northern advocacy group has lauded President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Minister of State for Defence Bello Matawalle and the Nigerian armed forces for the rapid operation that brought home the 24 schoolgirls abducted from Government Girls Secondary School, Maga, in Kebbi State.
The Northern Security and Civic Protection Forum (NSCPF), through a statement released on Tuesday and signed by its president, Dr Abdulrahman Al-Ma’aruf, said the federal government’s handling of the incident showed unusual decisiveness and a clear sense of direction.
The group noted that the rescue, which took place just days after the attack, was made possible by the intense coordination ordered by the President.
Naijaonpoint reports that the students were taken from their hostels by armed bandits on 17 November and regained their freedom on 25 November “after sustained military pressure forced the captors to abandon them in the forests”.
Al-Ma’aruf explained that Tinubu’s order directing Matawalle to immediately relocate to Kebbi changed the pace and urgency of the mission.
“From the moment President Tinubu ordered the minister of state for defence to move to Kebbi and assume personal oversight of operations, the tempo changed,” the statement reads.
The statement added that the minister’s presence on the ground brought renewed momentum to security units operating across the northwest.
“His Excellency, Bello Matawalle, arrived with a clear mandate and deep personal knowledge of the terrain, having confronted similar security challenges during his years as governor of Zamfara,” the statement said. “What followed was an intense, closely coordinated multi-agency assault that left the bandits with no safe corridor to escape with the girls. The sustained bombardments over several days created pressure they could not withstand.”
The statement described the government’s approach as a departure from the “slow and reactive security posture Nigerians had become familiar with in the past”.
According to the NSCPF, the rescue proved that the armed forces possess the strategic capacity to dismantle criminal networks when supported by firm political will.
“For four straight days, the military maintained air and ground pressure on the kidnappers’ hideouts. It was this level of intensity that forced the criminals to abandon the girls. What the armed forces have done is not just a rescue; it is a statement of authority,” the statement continued.
The group also applauded Tinubu for sending, in its words, “a clear signal that schoolchildren are a red line for this administration”.
It stressed that the President’s prompt action averted what could have spiralled into a prolonged national ordeal.
Al-Ma’aruf called on the federal government to sustain its operations against bandit groups and ensure lasting stability across Kebbi, Zamfara, Sokoto, Niger and Kaduna.
He said the success of the rescue should serve as the starting point for a continuous offensive against those who prey on children.
The NSCPF urged authorities to provide trauma support and reintegration programmes for the rescued girls as they return home.
“With this rescue, the government has restored hope. Now it must consolidate by ensuring no child in northern Nigeria ever has to face such terror again,” the group added.
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