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Senate yesterday charged the Federal Government to urgently facilitate the release of Leah Sharibu, a female student of Science Secondary School, Dapchi in Yobe State still in Boko Haram’s captivity.
A splinter group of Boko Haram terrorists had on February 19, 2018 abducted 115 girls from the school, but released 109 a month after, saying that five of the girls died in captivity, while Leah was held back for refusing to renounce her Christian faith.
Although government promised Leah’s parents that she would be released by all means possible, she is still in captivity 13 months after.
But drawing Senate’s attention to her plight through a point of order, Senator Shehu Sani (PRP, Kaduna Central), said there was the need to urge the Federal Government to expedite action towards rescuing the girl.
Sani, who rode through Order 43 under personal explanation said: “Fourteen months of Leah in Boko Haram’s captivity and five years of the yet to be released Chibok girls, calls for national concern and urgent need for the authorities to do everything possible to release them.
“What perhaps may be the most important strategy to be adopted in getting Leah and others out of captivity, is to dialogue with their abductors. It had worked in Afghanistan, Pakistan terrorised by the Talibans and other places where similar abductions took place.”
Being a matter raised under self-explanation, the lawmakers did not debate Sani’s motion but Senate President, Bukola Saraki, said the Federal Government should make every effort to release Leah and the others.
