The Commissioner for Basic and Secondary Education in Yobe State, , Abba Adam has warned that the Kebbi school abductions signal a dangerous new trend in Nigeria’s insecurity crisis, adding that bandits are now brainwashing abducted students in addition to kidnapping them.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily on Tuesday, the Yobe State Governor’s aide Abba- Adam said the reports from the field indicate that the abductors are forcing distorted ideologies on the children, a development he described as the most dangerous aspect of recent attacks on schools.
“They are not only abducting them; They are trying to manipulate their ideology in the sense that they will let them know as if what they are doing is legitimate, as if they are being oppressed.
“So what they are doing is not just to kidnap these students and get ransomed, but also they are trying to plant something into their ideology so that even when these children are, you know, rescued, when they come back, they will still feel in their mind as if what these bandits are doing are vindicated. So this is actually the most dangerous aspect of it,” he explained.
He questioned how terrorists were able to move smoothly from their hideouts to the school in Kebbi State and escape without interception. Although he admitted he is not a security expert, he insisted the situation exposes a major security breakdown.
He also affirmed that governors often receive intelligence that has been filtered through several layers of analysis, weakening the urgency of their response.
“It’s always planned and it’s always known ahead. It’s actually true because I believe the governor is the chief executive and the chief security officer of his state.
“However, depending on information from the security personnel, that sometimes may not come at the right time is one of the causes, one of the reasons why we are having this problem,” he said.
The commissioner warned that schools have become so vulnerable that attending classes now exposes children to danger.
“A child that is supposed to be safe in school is now exposing himself to danger by going to school. It’s like these bandits have a plan. You either remain out of school or even when you go to school, we abduct you and then we forcefully ask you to believe in our ideology,” he said.
Commissioner Warns Bandits Are Indoctrinating Abducted Students
Yobe State’s Commissioner for Basic and Secondary Education, Abba Adam, has warned that the Kebbi school abductions signal a dangerous new trend in Nigeria’s insecurity crisis, saying bandits are now brainwashing abducted students in addition to kidnapping them.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily on Tuesday, Adam said reports from the field indicate that the abductors are forcing distorted ideologies on the children, a development he described as the most dangerous aspect of recent attacks on schools.
“They are not only abducting them; They are trying to manipulate their ideology in the sense that they will let them know as if what they are doing is legitimate, as if they are being oppressed.
“So what they are doing is not just to kidnap these students and get ransomed, but also they are trying to plant something into their ideology so that even when these children are, you know, rescued, when they come back, they will still feel in their mind as if what these bandits are doing are vindicated. So this is actually the most dangerous aspect of it,” he explained.
