Tinubu orders defence minister to relocate to kebbi as 24 schoolgirls remain in captivity

President Bola Tinubu has ordered the Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, to immediately relocate to Kebbi State following the abduction of 24 schoolgirls from Government Girls Comprehensive Secondary School, Maga.

According to a statement issued by the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, Tinubu directed Matawalle to remain in the state and personally oversee ongoing security operations aimed at securing the swift release of the abducted girls.

The armed men reportedly stormed the school around 4:00am on Monday, whisking away the students under the cover of darkness. One girl managed to escape shortly after the attack, leaving 24 still held captive.

The gravity of the situation has forced President Tinubu to postpone his planned foreign trips to Johannesburg, South Africa, and Luanda, Angola, as he continues to receive security briefings on both the Kebbi school abduction and the attack on Christ Apostolic Church worshippers in Eruku, Kwara State.

Matawalle is expected to arrive in Birnin-Kebbi on Friday, where he will coordinate with military and security chiefs on the ground. The statement highlighted that the minister is not unfamiliar with such crises, having previously served as Zamfara State governor between 2019 and 2023—years marked by persistent banditry and high-profile kidnappings.

In one of the most notable incidents during his governorship, 279 schoolgirls aged 10 to 17 were abducted from Government Girls Science Secondary School, Jangebe, in February 2021. They were freed five days later.

Meanwhile, Senator Garba Maidoki of Kebbi South has expressed confidence that the abducted girls will soon return home. “We have a fair idea where the girls are, and we are sure they have not moved outside the Kebbi South Senatorial District,” he said on Wednesday. “There is high hope that the girls will return home in one or two days.”

Vice President Kashim Shettima has also visited the affected community, reaffirming the Federal Government’s commitment to rescuing the schoolgirls and ensuring their safe return.