Following the failure of government and security agencies to secure the release of the 39 abducted students of the Federal College of Forestry Mechanisation in the Mando Igabi Local Government Area of Kaduna State, their parents have appealed to the Governor Nasir El-Rufai to bargain with the bandits to safely secure their release.
The parents expressed sadness that their wards have remained in captivity over two weeks after their abduction by gunmen who raided their hostels.
Recall that the gunmen shortly after the abduction of 23 female and 16 male students on March 12 demanded N500 million ransom in a viral video.
Despite the rescue of 180 abductees by security forces, 39 students are still held captive by the kidnappers.
A member of staff of the school and a representative of the affected parents, Sani Friday on Thursday said the parents are worried the bandits may harm their wards if the government resort to force.
Friday in an interview with Channels Television’s ‘Sunrise Daily’ said, “It is this state governor who sometimes ago told the entire Kaduna State that if it costs him to pay bandits to stop killing citizens of Kaduna State, he will pay them.
“Now, the state government came out even before the abduction of our students in the Federal College of Forestry that it is wrong to negotiate with bandits and that he is not going to negotiate.
“After that statement, this incident happened and it is based on that statement that the government is standing that it will not negotiate. But he (El-Rufai) made a statement before that he can do anything for the bandits to stop killing, so we want him to do something.
“One of the fears we have is that if the government feels that they can use force to bring out these children, it will be very disastrous because these bandits are well-equipped, they may decide to eliminate the children if they discover that the government is trying to use aggressive force on them because our children are being used as shields.
Friday’s two daughters were amongst the students captured by the gunmen.