SAN FRANCISCO, April 11, (THEWILL) – Catholic archbishop of Abuja diocese, Cardinal John Onaiyekan, Tuesday called on the federal government to step up its efforts at rescuing the kidnapped Chibok girls who have been in Boko Haram captivity since April 2014.
This was as he asserted that the federal government should have made headway in the rescue of the abducted schoolgirls having cleared Sambisa forest
Onaiyekan stated this during a solidarity march organised by the Bring Back Our Girls, BBOG, movement as part of its Global Week of Action to mark the third anniversary of the abduction and to press home its demand for the release of the girls.
The cardinal along with the Chief Imam of the National Assembly quarters mosque, Sheik Nura Khalid, had joined other BBOG members to walk from the Unity fountain, Maitama to the State House junction where they addressed newsmen.
“The families of the girls are still languishing and we think there is need to bring attention to that. We are told that the Sambisa forest has been cleared totally. So the question we are asking today is, where are our girls?
“Government should do more to release the girls and to also address the issue of kidnapping in our country,” he said.
While harping on the need for the rescue of the schoolgirls and other kidnapped citizens, Khalid said the country cannot afford to allow the Boko Haram insurgents to have their way.
“We can never allow the terrorists to have their way. If they get free with those girls, then they have relatively won the war. We want more actions from our government. The soul of all Nigerians are important,” the Chief Imam noted.
About the Author
