By DEJI ABDULWAHAB

The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Alhaji Mohammed Idris, says that the safe return of abducted school pupils and teachers in Oyo state remains a top national priority.

Idris gave the assurance in Abuja on Thursday at a news conference themed “United Against Terrors.”

According to him, the abduction of innocent school children and their teachers is not merely an attack on families or communities, it is an attack on the future of our nation, on education and on the lives and values that bind us all together as Nigerians.

“On behalf of President Bola Tinubu, and the entire Federal Government of Nigeria, I wish to assure all Nigerians that the safe return of every child and every teacher currently in captivity remains a top national priority.

“The President has made it clear that no child belongs in captivity and that no effort will be spared in ensuring that those responsible for these heinous crimes are brought to justice.

“The President has directed every lawful instrument available to the Nigerian state to be deployed towards achieving this objective, including the deployment of specialised rescue teams.

“He has also authorised the recruitment of 1,000 forest guards, as you already know, to strengthen national presence across vulnerable communities and forests within the state.”

The minister also acknowledged the strong collaboration between the federal government and the state governments in the fight against kidnaping and terrorism.

According to him, President Bola Tinubu has maintained close coordination with the Government of Nigeria and state security authorities.

“Both levels of government are sharing intelligence, coordinating rescue operations, and mobilising resources towards securing the release of the victims.

“President Bola Tinubu has publicly affirmed that the federal government and the state government are working together around the clock to ensure the successful rescue of the abducted children and their teachers.

“This build-up of cooperation extends to rural areas, where federal security agencies continue to work with the state government and local authorities in addressing the security challenges facing communities affected by terrorism.”

The minister reiterated that the fight against insecurity cannot be won by any single institution acting alone, adding that it required partnership, trust, and a common purpose.

“Government action alone is not enough. Terrorists thrive on fear, division, misinformation, and public despair.

“Their objective is not only to kidnap or kill, it is also to weaken national unity and undermine confidence in our institutions. We must not allow them the space to succeed,” Idris said.

He urged the media not to amplify the objectives of terrorists by giving them undue prominence.

“While it is essential to report accurately and hold government institutions accountable, we must be careful not to inadvertently amplify the objectives of terrorists by giving them undue prominence.

“Terrorist groups seek publicity, fear and they also seek psychological impact far beyond the immediate scene of their crimes.

“Responsible reporting, therefore, must be guided by professionalism, national interest, and all that you need to keep the nation together,” the minister said.

He urged the media to continue verifying information before publication and avoid sensationalism.

“At the same time, all citizens, regardless of their political affiliation, must work closely with the government and security agencies by sharing credible information and reporting suspicious activities.

“Defeating terrorism requires a whole-of-society approach. Nigeria must remain secure and united, because only in an atmosphere of peace and stability, our democracy, economy, media, national aspirations continue to flourish.”

Also speaking, Mr Zakari Mijinyawa, the Director, Legal Services, Office of the National Security Adviser, faulted the assertions that the armed forces lacked capacity to end the terrorism in the country.

Mijinyawa said, “It is not true. The capacity exists. The armed forces, the police, the interior services are well-equipped.

“But in analysing insecurity, you must put it into context. The objective of security to save lives is not to impress, it is to ensure that they come back safe to their families and to their communities.

“So, it’s not political. The capacity exists, but security agencies cannot respond just to political demands or to popular outcry.

“They must use their best training to do threat assessment and to know when it is time to move in or when the intelligence is appropriate to make a move.

“So, these are the angles that the public do not always understand in the difficult work of security planning. And this is what is happening even today,” he said.

According to him, security officers that serve Nigerians are working day and night to solve these problems. And most of these problems are solved without the details of how they are done out there.

“So, it is important that we all appreciate the unique nature of security engagement.

“I thought I should share this clearly. So it is not the issue of capacity, it is the issue of methodology and strategy that is involved, especially when hostages are taken and when kidnapping cases are involved.”

Speaking on the Federal Government’s Safe Schools Initiative (SSI), launched in 2014, Afolabi Babawale, the Public Relations Officer of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), said the initiative was still functioning but it had yet to capture schools at the remote areas.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the Safe Schools Initiative is a national policy and multi-billion naira funding programme designed to protect students, teachers, and school environments from attacks by extremists and bandits.

Babawale said, “The Safe Schools Initiative is still functioning at the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps. We have the National Safe School Response Coordination Centre, domiciled at the national headquarters of the NSCDC.

“In all the states of the federation where we have our desk officers and in all the 774 local governments, we still have some of our desk officers there.

“If you check our dashboard, we have so many schools that have registered. But the issue we are having are the schools in remote areas.

“And we are really working more on that in order to capture all the schools all over the federation. It’s quite unfortunate, the incident that happened in Oyo state.

“NSCDC and other agencies are really working hard to get to the root of the matter.” (NAN)

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