Families of dozens of schoolchildren abducted from two communities in Borno State took to the streets of Uba town on Thursday, demanding that the federal government intensify efforts to secure the release of their children after nearly 100 days in captivity.
The protest came as elders and community leaders in Askira/Uba Local Government Area marked what they called 100 days of “horror, pain and suffering” for the families of those still missing, appealing directly to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Borno State Governor Babagana Umara Zulum to act with greater urgency.
Two attacks, 78 children unaccounted for
The crisis began on May 15, when suspected Boko Haram gunmen stormed classrooms at Mussa Primary and Junior Day Secondary School in Mussa, a community on the edge of the Sambisa Forest, abducting 42 pupils and students. Weeks later, on June 29, suspected militants struck again, this time at Government Day Secondary School in nearby Lassa, seizing 36 students and a teacher as they sat for a National Examinations Council (NECO) paper.
Together, the two attacks have left 78 children unaccounted for, according to community leaders and the traditional ruler’s representative in Mussa, Orbet Lawan Yakubu, who said the disappearances had touched almost every family in the area.
“We don’t know whether they are healthy”
At Thursday’s protest, parents described months of uncertainty with no word on their children’s whereabouts or wellbeing. “We still have not seen them. We do not know where our children are. We don’t know whether they are healthy or going through difficult conditions,” said Chinda Buba, one of the parents at the demonstration.
Peace Nicolos, whose two children — aged three and eight — are among the missing, said the ordeal had upended daily life for affected families. “We worry every day and struggle to eat,” she said, appealing for a swift rescue.
Elders demand equal urgency
At a press conference in Abuja on Friday, the Hawul Askira-Uba Elders Forum widened its appeal beyond the two school abductions, calling for the rescue of 38 people reportedly abducted along the Buratai–Maiduguri road, as well as other victims taken along the Chibok route and other vulnerable roads in the state.
Forum secretary Malla Gadzama said the victims should not be reduced to “mere statistics,” insisting that each abducted person represented a family living with prolonged anguish. The group pointed to the successful rescue of schoolchildren and teachers abducted in Oyo State as proof that coordinated security operations could work, and pressed the federal government to apply the same determination in Borno.
“We are not asking for a preferential treatment. We are asking for equal protection under the law. We are asking for the same urgency. We are asking for the same determination,” the forum said, calling on authorities to maintain regular, credible communication with affected families. “Mr President, please bring our children home,” the group pleaded.
UNICEF calls for urgent action
The United Nations Children’s Fund has also urged federal and Borno State authorities to expedite efforts to secure the children’s release. Speaking at a media briefing in Maiduguri to mark World Humanitarian Day, UNICEF Nigeria Deputy Representative Dr Rownak Khan said the agency remained deeply concerned about the pattern of school abductions across the country.
“We are worried about the abduction of children, not only in Borno State but in Nigeria at large. School should be a safe place for them. They come here to learn and grow themselves,” Khan said, adding that UNICEF continues to work with the Borno State government on safe-school protocols.
Khan said the agency was ready to support the children’s reintegration once they are freed. “Once we have seen the children released, we will work with the government to reintegrate them, provide psychosocial support and nutrition, health and so on,” she said, stressing that protecting Nigerian children from abduction — and securing their release when it occurs — remains the government’s ultimate responsibility. As of Friday, none of the 78 children taken from Mussa and Lassa had been released, and their families continue to wait for word of their safety.
