Five months have passed since the abduction of hundreds of students and staff from LEA Primary and Secondary Schools in Kuriga, Chikun Local Government Area of Kaduna. The school is still closed, leaving many students without access to education due to ongoing fears of bandit attacks.
A recent ARTE.tv documentary showed that the school’s prolonged closure is mainly due to the community’s fear of another attack by bandits. The school has been shut since March, and the community remains too scared to reopen it. Maryam Illiyasu, a former student who was kidnapped, expressed her fear, saying, “They said if we set foot again, they would come and take us away. By then, we were afraid of ever going back to school.” This fear highlights the deep anxiety that prevents students and parents from returning to the school.
Governor Uba Sani, who visited the area after the attack, reported that many students from both the Government Secondary School and the local primary school were missing. On March 24, 2024, he announced that all 287 kidnapped students had been rescued unharmed. He thanked President Bola Tinubu and the Nigerian Army for their help. However, the governor did not provide details about how the students were released, leading to speculation that substantial ransom payments were made to the terrorists.
Sani Abdullahi, a teacher who narrowly escaped abduction, described the attack: “They came from the main road with bikes and guns around 7:47 am on March 7, 2024. They started kidnapping students there. It is easy to kidnap children.” Abdullahi noted that terrorists often target children to provoke strong emotional reactions from the government and the public, which can lead to ransom payments. This tactic underscores the severe impact of such violence on communities, disrupting daily life and education.
Sulyman Lawal, another abducted student, shared his experience: “We suffered a lot; they had no mercy on us. We spent 16 days in captivity. God came to our rescue, and they released us when the soldiers arrived and took us home.” His story illustrates the emotional and psychological damage these attacks inflict on young students.
The ongoing closure of LEA Primary and Secondary Schools in Kuriga highlights the urgent need for better security in Kaduna and similar areas. Until the community feels safe, many students will continue to be deprived of education, perpetuating a cycle of fear and disruption.
