Concerned parents of Chibok girls have appealed to President Bola Tinubu to help facilitate the release of 92 abducted girls still in Boko Haram’s captivity. 

The parents appealed in a letter on Monday by Yana Galang (mother to Rifkatu Galang, still in captivity) and Zanna Lawan (father to Aisha Lawan, still in captivity).

“Mr President, we seek you to be the light that will illuminate our darkness, end our writhing pains, dry our tears and free us from the shackles of sadness, sorrow, and anguish this trajectory has brought into our existence,” they said.

They begged the president to use his honourable office to help release the remaining girls in captivity. 

“It has been years of pain and agony for us, and we are disheartened that nine years later and a few months before the end of the immediate past administration, 92 of these girls remain in Boko Haram captivity, subjected to the unimaginable ordeal and abuse at the hands of their captors,” the parents said.

The parents, in the letter, acknowledged that Mr Tinubu, in his inaugural speech, despite not making a direct pledge, particularly regarding their plight in Chibok, pledged to make security a top priority.

They subsequently sought Mr Tinubu’s attention to beam a searchlight to the recovery of the remaining 92 of the kidnapped girls.

They recalled that former President Muhammadu Buhari, in his inaugural speech on May 29, 2015, said he would not claim to have defeated Boko Haram without rescuing the Chibok girls.

They added that on April 14, 2021, a statement titled “Chibok Girls Still on Our Minds” was also released and further reminded them of the former president’s promise and reassured them that all their girls would be rescued and reintegrated into communities.

“With the baton changing under the same political party in 2023, history will no doubt be kind to you, your family, your government and your party if these statements from your predecessor are achieved under you, more so with our son, Vice President Shettima.

“When we marked the ninth year remembrance of the abduction this year, we didn’t think we would hold any more commemoration, and the truth is that we don’t want to, but regrettably, so it seems, except you come to our rescue and give us succour, another sober commemoration knocks,” the parents stated. 

(NAN)