Kankara Kidnap: Lawan reacts to release of kidnapped students

The President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, has reacted to the release of the schoolboys kidnapped at Government Science Secondary School, Kankara in Katsina State.

Lawan in a statement released by his Special Adviser on Media, Ola Awoniyi, said the news of their release was a delight to their parents and everyone who have been horrified by their kidnap.

The Senate President also commended the parents of the victims who according to him had been under emotional stress as they prayed for the safe return of their children.

“The past few days have been a nightmare for the parents of the students, their teachers and all of us as a nation.

“This unfortunate incident reminds us of our country’s continued vulnerability to heartless crimes such as the kidnap of hundreds of schoolgirls in Chibok in 2014 and the Dapchi incident of 2018.

”The scar of those earlier incidents is still on us as a country and we had hoped that the outrage that they sparked would mean such never happened again in Nigeria.

“However, this sad recurrence is enough warning to us as a nation to deploy all the resources required for the security of our educational institutions, and everywhere else our children gather, to protect them against cowardly attacks by these terrorists.

“I commend the prompt intervention and productive engagement of President Muhammadu Buhari, Governor Aminu Masari of Katsina state and others which resulted in the release of the children,” he said.

The Senate President commended the security forces and the intelligence community for their coordinated efforts which ensured the safe release of the boys.

He also urged them to continue in the same spirit and with the same approach in addressing other security issues across Nigeria.