Niger State governor orders closure of boarding schools

Niger State governor Sani Bello has ordered the immediate closure of all boarding schools in four local council areas in the state after students and teachers were kidnapped from Government Science College (GSC) in Kagara.

Bello said boarding schools in Rafi, Munya, Shiroro and Mariga local government areas will be closed indefinitely because of heightened insecurity.

Gunmen dressed in military uniforms stormed the Government Science College before hauling students into a nearby forest, a government official and a security source told AFP.

“Bandits went into GSC Kagara last night and kidnapped hundreds of students and their teachers,” said the official, who asked not to be named due to the sensitivity of the issue.

“One of the kidnapped staff and some students managed to escape. The staff confirmed a student was shot dead during the kidnap operation,” the official said.

President Muhammad Buhari Wednesday morning directed military and Police, to effect the immediate rescue and safe return of all the yet to be ascertained number of staff and students.

He also ordered the dispatched to Minna a team of security chiefs to coordinate the rescue operation and meet with state officials, community leaders, as well as parents and staff of the college.

Buhari, in a statement assured the support of his administration to the Armed Forces in their struggle against terrorism and banditry and urged them to do all that can be done to bring an end to the saga, and avoid cowardly attacks on schools in the future.