After Six Years Chibok Students Write WAEC

Secondary school students in Chibok, Borno State, sat down to write their WASSCE exams for the first time in six years.

This was made possible by the joint collaboration of the Nigerian Army, the education department at the defence ministry, and the Education in Emergency Working Group (EiEWG) Nigeria.

Chibok saw a shuttering of its educational facilities after Boko Haram insurgents kidnapped over 200 students from the Government Girls Secondary School in 2014.

Although a few of the abducted girls remain in captivity, the Nigerian Government has been able to secure the release of some of the girls.

The acting General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the 7 division, Abdul-Khalifa Ibrahim, who was represented by Ifeanyi Otu, received the members of the EiEWG.

He was quoted by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) to have said, “It will be gladdening to note that for the first time in the past six years, WAEC successfully held WASSCE in Chibok with the military providing security.

“We are all witnesses to what happened in the recent past like the abduction of the Chibok girls, the slaughtering of students at Buni Yadi, and abduction of students at Dapchi. These are all that happened and we have turned around that narrative.

“Let me equally say that the chief of army staff has been making deliberate efforts through the education corps to post teachers to all schools within the north-east states.

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“We are really doing enough to ensure that education is resuscitated and as we all know, education is one thing that liberates the individual and liberates the minds. In the first place, this conflict would not have thrived if not that there was a high illiteracy rate in this zone.”

Speaking on the matter, the leader of the EiEWG and the director of education of the defence ministry, Afolake Taiwo, said, “We are passionate about making sure that our education is not under attack and this is actually coming from the Safe School Declaration (SSD) that was signed by the president."