190 schoolgirls still missing —Principal

PRINCIPAL of Government Girls Secondary School, where schoolgirls were kidnapped last week, Asabe Kwambura, has said 190 schoolgirls, and not 77, remain missing.

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The head teacher told the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) Hausa service that parents of 230 girls had reported them missing, but 40 had managed to escape.
Earlier, the Borno State governor said about 77 of the teenagers had not been accounted for.

According to the AP news agency, parents from the school in Chibok told Borno State governor, Kashim Shettima, when he visited on Monday, that 234 girls had been abducted.
When news first emerged of the kidnap, initial reports said more than 200 students had been seized, but state officials said the correct figure was about 130.
Ms Kwambura told the BBC Hausa Service that about 43 had fled from their captors.
“None of these girls was rescued by the military, they managed to escape on their own from their abductors,” she said.
Asked about the conflicting reports on the number of students kidnapped, she said “Report that comes from us is the truth and based on the register we have.”
Before visiting Chibok on Monday, the Borno State governor had said eight more girls had escaped at the weekend, meaning a total of 52 had escaped.
Shettima, however, did not give details of how the girls escaped, for security reasons.
Insurgency: APC begs abductors of schoolgirls •Group urges FG to deploy security technologiesFrom Lanre Adewole and Isaac Shobayo, with Agency reports

All Progressives Congress (APC), on Monday, called on the abductors of the schoolgirls in Borno State to unconditionally release them immediately in the spirit of the season.
Party’s spokesperson, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, who spoke at the dedication of the N150 million Catholic Church in his hometown of Oro, in Kwara State, noted that whatever grievances the abductors might have, they had nothing to do with innocent school girls.
The party, therefore, urged the kidnappers to free the girls remaining in their custody and cease forthwith all acts of violence against innocent citizens.
‘’Violence has never resolved any issue. Dialogue is always the preferred and civilised way to go in resolving any conflict, no matter how difficult. We are therefore calling on those who have been perpetrating unbridled violence to stop their despicable acts and renounce violence,’’ APC said.
The party congratulated the Church on the successful completion of the magnificent edifice, and hailed it for forging the spirit of love, tolerance and peace within the community.
‘’It is noteworthy that the annual Ramadan Talk hosted by the APC’s Interim National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, is held within the church grounds. There is no better example of religious tolerance and commitment to societal peace than this,’’ the party said.
Meanwhile, a group, International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law, has advised the Federal Government to deploy hi-tech crime detecting technologies in the fight against terrorism.
Mr Emeka Umeagbasi, the Chairman of the group, gave the advice on Monday in a statement in Onitsha, Anambra State.
He said that government should also use foreign experts in the fight against terrorism.
The group said that the only way out of the multi-faceted security breaches was for government to secure services of trained terrorism intelligence experts.
“This explains why there are over four million hidden security cameras in the United Kingdom.
“The world’s two most endangered countries: Israel and USA are secured every hour through electronic security devices and super security intelligence networks,’’ it said.
 The statement said that more than 60,000 Nigerians had been killed since 1999, a period of 15 years.
“In four months into 2014 alone, up to 3,000 Nigerians have been killed by criminals.
“Those killed by insurgents are believed to be over 1,500.
 “While another armed opposition group, popularly known as gunmen, must have been responsible for over 1,000 deaths,’’ it said.
The group said that the insurgency was surmountable, but the country “lacks electronic security devices fundamentally needed to match the insurgents’ asymmetric warfare.”
Piqued by the barrage of comments against the Federal Government over the insecurity in the Northern part of the country, a delegate to the ongoing National Conference from Plateau State, Elder Bulus Dareng, said the security challenges facing the country could only be overcomed through collective approach irrespective of creed, religious and tribal affiliations.
Yana attack: Bauchi govt orders evacuation of GGSS studentsSaliu Gbadamosi - Bauchi

FOLLOWING Sunday’s attack on Yana, the headquarters of Shira Local Government Area of Bauchi State, by a group of unknown gunmen, in which a five-year-old girl was burnt to death, with motorcycles, vehicles and staff quarters also set ablaze, the Bauchi State government has ordered the immediate evacuated of over 200 students from Government Girls Secondary School (GGSS), Yana.
Unknown gunmen had, at about 2.30 a.m. on Sunday, attacked the town, setting ablaze the GGSS bus, staff quarters and telecommunications masts belonging to Globacom, MTN and Etisalat.
The hoodlums also attacked a branch of a first generation bank in the town and destroyed its vault, while they also attacked Shira Local Government Council secretariat, destroying about 15 vehicles and the council’s conference hall.
The state Commissioner for Education, Alhaji Ibrahim Mohammed Aminu, told journalists in Bauchi, on Monday, in a telephone interview that the students were evacuated with a view to allowing the school authorities to carry out renovation works on the buildings burnt during the attack.
According to the commissioner, the evacuation affected only the SSS 3 students currently writing West African Examination Council’s (WAEC) Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE), since they were the only students still in school as of the time of the attack.
While saying that the evacuation was not as a result of the attack launched on the area, the commissioner stated that it was only meant to renovate the buildings destroyed before schools resumed for the third term.
He, however, assured that the state government had put in place adequate security measures to ensure safety, of not only the students of the school, but also of all schools in the state, to avoid a recurrence of what happened at Chibok, Borno State, where about 200 students were kidnapped by some suspected insurgents.
“The Bauchi State government ordered the evacuation of the students to enable renovation work on the buildings destroyed, but the evacuation is temporary, because they will only stay away for three weeks.
“The students in the school now are the final year students writing WAEC examinations because the JSS 1-3 and SSS 1-2 are on holiday. So, we want to use this period to renovate the destroyed buildings to enable them learn in conducive environment when they resume,” the commissioner said.
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