Schoolchildren Are Also Kidnapped In U.S, Others Countries – Lai Mohammed

Lai Mohammed, the Minister of Information and Culture on Monday said kidnapping and abduction of Schoolchildren are not peculiar to Nigeria alone that other developed countries like the United States also experience student kidnapping.

Lai Mohammed stated this while featuring on Channel Television's News Night on the rising insecurity in Nigeria.

The minister who averred that terrorist doesn't live by the rules of government and are interested in soft targets alleged that there were kidnapping incidents in at least four schools in the United States in 2020. 

Mohammed noted that the kidnapping of school children attracts more global attention and that is why kidnappers engage in them. He further stated that what matters most to him is intelligence gathering as Nigeria cannot turn all its schools into barracks.

.He, however, clarified that the government would not pay ransom to secure the release of the abducted students and members of staff of Government Science College in Kagara, Niger State. He added that the government was employing kinetic and non-kinetic means to ensure the release of the abductees.

Mohammed said, “Even in the most developed countries of this world, school kidnapping takes place. Last year, in the US, we all witnessed three of four school kidnappings, and that is probably one of the most developed countries in the world.

READ ALSO: Kagara: FG May Swap Arrested Bandits For Abducted Schoolchildren

“The thing about terrorism is that the terrorists don’t live by your own rules and they are especially interested in soft targets. They know that what is going to get global attention is kidnapping school children.

“We must be careful; we can’t turn all our schools into barracks. What is important is intelligence gathering, surveillance rather than the physical presence of the soldiers or policemen.

“We are dealing with people who don’t think like me and you, we are dealing with people who don’t have any rules of engagement, we are dealing with people whose motivation is completely different from mine and yours. And anywhere in the world, this is how terrorists operate but the most important thing is to learn from what is happening and adapt.”

AllNews had reported that some students and staff of Kagara were kidnapped when bandits stormed the school last Wednesday. A student was also reportedly killed by the bandits during the attack.