Kebbi State Governor, Mohammed Nasir Idris, has condemned what he described as a “failure to act on credible intelligence” that warned of an imminent attack on Government Girls Comprehensive Secondary School, Maga, in Danko/Wasagu Local Government Area.
The attack, which occurred in the early hours of Monday, led to the killing of the school’s vice principal and the abduction of 25 female students. Three of the abducted students were said to have escaped.
According to Pointblanknews.com, a top security source revealed that Governor Idris, who arrived at the school around 6:45 p.m. on Monday, accused unnamed security agencies of undermining the state’s efforts to protect vulnerable communities.
“This is clear sabotage. We got credible intelligence from the DSS that this school was likely to be attacked. DSS further advised that we convene an emergency Security Council meeting, which we did. And the decision was that we would provide round-the-clock protection for the students,” the governor said.
Idris noted that he had taken the intelligence warning seriously, recalling the December 2020 abduction of over 300 pupils in Kankara, Katsina State, which similarly followed unutilized intelligence reports.
He expressed frustration that although security personnel were deployed to guard the school, they abandoned their posts shortly before the gunmen arrived.
“The heavily armed security men spent time taking photographs with the students, only to abandon them 30 minutes before the attack,” he lamented.
The governor, who visited the scene alongside security chiefs, announced the establishment of a special investigation panel to determine how the attack occurred despite prior warnings and protective measures.
Headed by the State Director of the DSS, the panel is also tasked with coordinating efforts to secure the safe return of the kidnapped students.
READ FULL STORY HERE: https://thesun.ng/kebbi-school-kidnap-gov-fumes-over-alleged-failure-to-act-on-credible-intelligence/
