Some students of the Government Girls Science and Technical College, Dapchi, have spoken on how their schoolmates were kidnapped by Boko Haram terrorists.
According to two students, the Boko Haram insurgents dressed as soldiers and lured their school mates away.
Speaking to The Cable in a report published on Wednesday, February 28, 2018, Yagana Mustapha, 14, said she was one of the students at the mosque at the time of the attack.
Boko Haram disguised as Nigerian soldiers
According to her, the Boko Haram terrorists told the fleeing students that they were Nigerian soldiers who had come to rescue them.
“We ran to the gate. Then they (Boko Haram) lied saying Boko Haram is attacking the village. ‘Come, Come, I want to help you” she narrated.
Ajara Lawal, another 14-year-old student of the school said the terrorists wore military uniforms and came in three trucks painted in army green.
“They were wearing soldier’s uniform and they said ‘Come, come, we are here to rescue you’. I even stepped my leg into the car, but my elder sister called and said don’t you see that there is Allahu Akbar is written on their car, that was how I ran out” Ajara revealed.
“They deceived us. They came with three vans in army colours and they had army uniform, but they didn’t have army boots, that is how some of us identified them – through the slippers and their military trouser which did not reach the ground — three-quarter length” she further said.
The Nigerian Military knew about the attack before hand
The recent abduction of schoolgirls at the Government Science and Technical College in Dapchi, Yobe state may not have happened without the notice of the Nigerian Army.
A document obtained by Sahara Reporters indicated that the Defence Headquarters (DHQ) was notified by the Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA) of plans by Boko Haram militants to carry out a massive attack in February 2018.
The confidential memo dated February 6, 2018, and titled “Plans By BHT To Carry Out Massive Attacks In Maiduguri And Damaturu” was signed by Brigadier-General E.A Adeniyi.
The military, however, disregarded the instruction to stay on high alert, as troops were withdrawn from Dapchi in Yobe state, where over 100 schoolgirls were kidnapped.
Deputy Director, Public Relations, the Theatre Command, Colonel Onyema Nwachukwu in a statement, said the military should not be blamed for the latest round of horror, as troops handed a peaceful and calm situation to the Police.
However, the Nigerian police have denied the claim, stating there was not proper handing-over done to their men. The Commissioner of Police, Sumonu Abdulmaliki, said the military never handed over Dapchi town to the Police.
In a personally signed statement, Abdulmaliki explained that Yobe State remains a security emergency being monitored by security agencies.
Federal Government response
The Federal Government has set up a 12-member committee to unravel the circumstances surrounding the abduction of 110 students of the Government Girls Science and Technical College (GGSTC) in Dapchi, Yobe State, following the attack on the school by insurgents on February 19, 2018.
Source: Pulse.ng
