The release of more than 100 kidnapped schoolgirls on Wednesday has done little to quell the anger than many Nigerians feel toward their government, whose pronouncements, they say, ring hollow as resurgent Islamist Boko Haram militants run rampant in the country’s remote northeast.
Reviving grim memories of the seizure of 276 schoolgirls four years ago in the town of Chibok, Boko Haram militants kidnapped the students from the Government Girls Science and Technical College in Dapchi last month.
Nigerian authorities said the Islamic State-affiliated fighters brought the girls back to Dapchi after back-channel talks that did not involve ransom money.
The girls’ parents were elated.
“I can confirm to you that, together with the released girls, we are on our way to the general hospital,” said Bashir Manzo, chairman of the Dapchi Girls Parents Association.
Not everyone was celebrating, and many say the incident calls into serious question President Muhammadu Buhari’s claims.
- The Washington Times