Parents of the remaining 29 students of Federal College of Forestry Mechanization, Afaka, Kaduna still in captivity are set to storm the National Assembly to seek the lawmakers’ support in securing release of their children.
The school was attacked on March 11, 2021 with 39 of the students preparing for their examinations abducted, 10 of them have been released but 29 of them remained in their captors’ custody.
The parents are set to take their case to Abuja if the Forestry Research Institute of Nigeria (FRIN), which supervises the College, fails to secure the release of their children from their abductors by midnight of Thursday, April 29, 2021.
According to a statement jointly signed by its Chairman, Usman Abdullahi and Secretary, Catherine Y. Saleh, “the Monday, April 26th meeting reviewed events from the first day of abduction of the students, on 11th March 2021, 50 days ago, to date, beyond the release of 10 of the students, and noted that there is no sign whatsoever that anything is being done at any level to secure the release of the remaining 29 students.
“Consequently, the parents see no hope in sight for the release of their children. What stares at them now is abandonment and neglect of the poor children. As at the afternoon of Thursday, April 29, there was no inkling of hope from any government quarters, suggesting any time for the release of the 29 remaining abductees.
“At the National Assembly, the aggrieved parents would seek the intervention of the federal parliamentarians to query the Minister of Environment whose ministry oversees the affairs of FRIN, which in turn oversees the affairs of the College where their children were abducted, over the continued captivity of the children.
“Since the 10 students were released in two batches of five each, the parents have been condemned to excruciating trauma over the continued captivity of their children, especially as they have been left to fight alone for the release of the children without any iota of concern shown by the FRIN towards securing their release.
“The parents also expressed their outrage over the way the 10 released students are left to cater for themselves without any care whatsoever, especially in terms of medical checkup from any arm of government, as against the claim for such care by government.
“The parents of the 10 released students, who have vowed not to back out of the struggle for the release of the remaining 29, have had to go in and out of hospital to take care of their children’s health at their own personal cost. This development is unacceptable as it shows abdication of responsibility by those in whose custody the students were before their abduction.
“The parents of the 10 students released are going through a lot to keep their children in good health and sound mind. The parents of the students still in captivity, while awaiting the release of their own children, demand compensation from FRIN for the students already released and those that will be released later for their proposed rehabilitation.”
