The President of Nigeria Muhammadu Buhari And his administration have vowed to continue to protect the right of the citizens wherever they were He said.
Buhari made the promise in an interview with journalists at the Presidential Wing of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, shortly before he left the country for a three-day official visit to Germany.
Reacting to the news of the release of the 21 Chibok girls, Buhari said, “Well, I am very pleased about it (the girls’ release).
“I expect you to get through to the Minister of Information and Culture.
“I believe he will be duly briefed by the Vice-President so that he will give you the details. I have just been briefed about it.
“To Nigerians all over, it is our responsibility and we will continue to secure them wherever they are.”
The Senior Special Assistant to the Vice-President, Laolu Akande, later released a statement indicating that the government was assembling medical experts that would attend to the released girls.
“The Federal Government is now gathering medical and other support and care in Abuja for the just released 21 Chibok girls,” he said.
Meanwhile, there was muted celebration at the sit-out of the BringBackOurGirls on Thursday following the release of the 21 Chibok girls.
The BBOG members were full of praises for the Federal Government, but were quick to urge it to hasten the rescue of the remaining 197 girls still in the Boko Haram captivity.
The Chairman, Chibok Community in Abuja, Tsambido Abana, expressed appreciation to the Federal Government and the BBOG group for campaigning for the release of the girls, who had been in captivity for 913 days.
Abana said, “We really thank God, but we are still waiting for the other 197. We don’t know the system they are going to adopt; whether they will allow us to meet them with the parents to identify them.
“We are happy, we thank God. We thank you all.”
Also, Rebecca Ishaku, one of the Chibok girls, who escaped during the April 2014 abduction, said she dreamt about her colleagues in captivity daily, adding that she wept for joy when she heard about the release of the 21 girls.
Speaking at the BBOG sit-out in Abuja on Thursday, Ishaku said she had almost lost hope of ever seeing her friends again, commending the BBOG for not giving up on the campaign for the rescue of the schoolgirls.
“When I heard about the release of my friends by the Boko Haram, I was so happy; tears of joy fell from my eyes. I was thinking that it may not happen; Since I escaped, every day I think about them, I prayed for them and today; God helped me, my classmates are back,” Ishaku said.
Recalling how she escaped abduction, Ishaku said she simply prayed for divine assistance, adding that she was afraid of being with the terrorists, having heard and seen the terrible things they did.
She said, “It was God that helped me. I had an operation around that time, so I said I was not going to follow these people. I said, ‘oh God, if you know I am going to disappoint you, please help me to escape’, and I was able to jump from the truck and escaped.”
Esther Yakubu, a parent of one of the abducted girls, described the girls’ release as a positive development and commended Buhari for his efforts.
“We thank the President for his efforts and we want the government not to relent, but to press harder for the rescue or release of others in the Boko Haram captivity,” Yakubu said.
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