ABUJA, Nigeria (VOICE OF NAIJA)-Former Vice President and African Democratic Congress, ADC, presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has described the release of the abducted Oyo schoolchildren and teachers on Friday as a huge relief but expressed concern over what he called the political undertone surrounding the development.
In a statement issued on Saturday by his spokesperson, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku said it was striking and shocking that the victims regained their freedom on the same day the national leadership of President Bola Tinubu’s All Progressives Congress launched its ‘Door-to-Door’ campaign for the 2027 presidential election.
While commending the Nigerian military for the successful rescue operation, Atiku criticised the Tinubu administration, alleging that the government was focused on re-election politics while the schoolchildren remained in the custody of kidnappers for weeks.
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He argued that rescuing the abducted schoolchildren should have taken precedence over the commencement of political campaigns for the 2027 elections.
“The rescue of innocent schoolchildren from the hands of terrorists is a victory for our gallant troops and a source of hope for every Nigerian family. They deserve the gratitude of the nation.
“No serious government should be consumed by the politics of re-election while innocent schoolchildren have remained in the custody of kidnappers for weeks. The first campaign of any responsible administration must be the campaign to rescue its citizens, restore security and reassure anxious families. Politics can wait; the lives of innocent children cannot. Yesterday should have been dedicated to the war room, not the campaign room.”
“The commander-in-chief is more than a constitutional title; it is a moral responsibility. In moments of national triumph and national grief, Nigerians expect to see their president embody that office. Leadership is not exercised only behind closed doors; it must also be seen, heard and felt by both the citizens and those who threaten them,” he stated.