Niger State Government Orders Closure Of All Schools Until After New Year

Just under a full day following the incident where armed assailants kidnapped more than 300 pupils from St. Mary’s Catholic Primary and Secondary Schools located in Papiri, within the Agwara Local Government Area, the leader of Niger state, whose name is Mohammed Bago, has issued a directive for the shutdown of every educational institution throughout the entire state up until the period following the New Year, and at the same time, the educational facilities situated in regions impacted by security issues within the State are going to remain closed down up until a later announcement is made.

The state’s chief executive revealed this information during a session where he was responding to inquiries posed by journalists in the city of Minna, which serves as the capital of the state, right after a gathering involving security personnel and various interested parties that took place at the Government House to discuss the ongoing security challenges present in the state.

As explained by the Governor himself, this shutdown decision impacts a wide range including both privately owned and publicly operated schools, as well as those that are Islamic in nature and those run by missionaries, along with colleges that are under federal government control and even certain higher education establishments such as the ones focused on nursing and midwifery training.

The Governor went on to mention that these educational institutions are going to be closed down up until the time after the New Year has passed, and in addition, the ones located in areas affected by security concerns are going to be closed down up until a further announcement is provided.

When addressing the topic of the kidnapping event, Governor Bago expressed that it represented a situation which might have been prevented from happening, but nevertheless, the administration is not going to spend its efforts engaging in accusations or pointing fingers, but instead will concentrate on exploring methods to secure the safe return of the kidnapped youngsters.

“To forestall further occurence, schools are generally supposed to close for Christmas in the next two weeks, but we cannot take any chances anymore. We are closing all schools in Niger state, private primary and secondary schools, every school will remain closed until after the New Year while all schools in Niger North will be closed until further notice,” he stated.

The Governor further indicated that the numbers regarding the students, pupils, and teachers who were taken in the abduction have not yet been confirmed as official,

“We have just been seeing a lot of numbers in the media but the figures are not official. The DSS, police and other security agencies are already doing the head count and by the end of today, we will have the official figure” he said

A Gentle Reminder: Every obstacle is a stepping stone, every morning; a chance to go again, and those little steps take you closer to your dream.

Nnamdi Okoli